By Rick Fromme
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| Photo Courtesy of flanderstoday.eu |
Many of us have heard the expression, “If it bleeds, it
leads,” referring to the phenomenon that with many news outlets ― online, TV, radio
and print ― the more harrowing a story, the better its chance of becoming
headline news.
It’s true the Ebola virus is a major health concern in
West Africa and several other countries of the vast African
continent. The facts are disconcerting: Africa is currently facing its worst
Ebola outbreak in history, with over 1,600 officially reported cases of infection,
a death toll of 880 and rising, and a startling mortality rate of up to 90%.
It’s the largest-ever recorded outbreak of Ebola since the virus’ discovery in
the Democratic Republic in 1976. Worse, most epidemiologists feel the disease will continue to spread throughout additional regions of the continent before it can be arrested.
Possible Pandemic?
However, the CDC and other leading experts are virtually
unanimous in emphasizing the likelihood of Ebola spreading like wildfire across
the U.S. is very low. And if a developed country such as the U.S. should
experience some isolated cases, our healthcare system has the wherewithal to
deal with and contain the infection (in its current state).
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| Photo Courtesy of www.timesofisrael.com |
Dr.Leslie Lobel, an Israeli researcher at Ben Gurion University, and one the
world’s few experts and leaders in developing a vaccine against the Ebola virus, feels it’s important to understand the current etiology about this
Ebola outbreak and why it’s spreading so quickly in certain parts of
Africa. The American-born Lobel feels the
poor security regimes of the most affected countries is one of the factors to
blame for the extent of the current epidemic. Lobel points out that these
countries have very “porous” borders, and their lack of quarantining methods
prevents their ability to wean out the disease. Consequently, more people
become infected and unknowingly spread the contagion.
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| Photo Courtesy of reunionblackfamily.com |
Massachusetts-based risk perception consultant David Ropeik concurs.
“It’s called the ‘availability heuristic,’” Ropeik recently explained on NBC
News. “It’s a mental shortcut for making sense of partial information. We have
lazy brains. We don’t want to think about things in a lot of detail."
However, he adds, “Dying from Ebola does suck, it’s not a good way to go. That
makes it scarier.”
Thankfully, a U. S.-based pandemic of Ebola is highly
unlikely. Instead of fretting disproportionately about it, what we can do is
donate funds, our energies, and other altruistic measures towards helping such aid
organizations and charities as Doctors Without Borders and the Red Cross towards
helping the afflicted in Africa. And, of course, pray for those patients
and/or people whose family and friends are sick or endangered.
Wipe, Wash, Wear: New Paradigm for World-Class Healthcare
Another pathogen that continues to make headlines is the ongoing
challenge of preventing the spread of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus (MRSA), an infection caused by a strain of staph bacteria that's become
resistant to antibiotics which were regularly used to treat common staph infections. Most
MRSA infections occur in people who've been in hospitals or other health care
settings, such as nursing homes and dialysis centers. When it occurs in these
settings, it's known as healthcare-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA). HA-MRSA
infections typically are associated with invasive procedures or devices, such
as surgeries, intravenous tubing or artificial joints.
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| Photo Courtesy of mrsdisease.com |
Consider the following:
The CDC reports that about one in 25 hospital patients has at least one health care-associated infection. The agency estimates two million patients suffer from hospital-acquired infections (HAI) every year and nearly 100,000 of them die. Hospital-acquired infections result in up to $4.5 billion in additional healthcare expenses annually. Furthermore, more than half of all HAIs occurred outside of the intensive care unit.
The CDC’s “Antibiotic Resistance Threats in the United
States, 2013” reports: “At least two million people become infected with
bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics and at least 23,000 people die each
year as a direct result of these infections. Many more people die from other
conditions that were complicated by an antibiotic-resistant infection. Antibiotic-resistant
infections can happen anywhere. Data show that most happen in the general
community; however, most deaths related to antibiotic resistance happen in
healthcare settings such as hospitals and nursing homes.”
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| Photo Courtesy of darrelhicks.com |
Of course, if you’re a health care provider, or if you’re
looking for a health care job, especially in any of the clinical specialties,
you know the prevention of healthcare facility and hospital-borne diseases is of
paramount concern.
Diane Raines, Baptist Health’s Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer in Jacksonville,
Florida points out that judicious and frequent hand washing remains one of the
first tiers of defense against microbial spread. So, too, are the rigorous
cleaning of rooms and other surfaces, appropriate use of personal protective
equipment, appropriate preparation of patients for surgery, and other measures.
However, studies have found that, outside of the operating
arena ― which Raines says is usually the most sterile environment of any
hospital ― problematic are soft surfaces, such as uniforms and scrubs, even
doctors’ ubiquitous white coats, because they serve as vectors for the spread
of organisms in many settings, especially acute care. Last February, the
Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America issued several recommendations
to prevent transmission of healthcare-associated infections from healthcare
personnel attire.
Furthering its proactive mission as one of the nation’s leading healthcare systems, this past July, Baptist Health in Jacksonville became the first health system in the world to widely adopt specialized staff uniforms to repel fluids and minimize the risk of transmission of organisms. As part of its continued commitment to patient safety, Baptist Health partnered with Orlando’s Vestagen Technical Textiles, a global innovator in the development of advanced textile technologies.
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| Photo Courtesy of Vestagen Technical Textiles |
Are Your Scrubs a Carrier or a Barrier?
The fabric’s fluid barrier binds to individual fibers,
resulting in material that’s highly repellent to bodily fluids, water, oil and
dirt. This high repellency has been shown to synergize with Vestagen’s
embedded antimicrobial technology to prevent organisms from being acquired and
retained on the fabric. “It reduces the bio-burden of our hospital staff’s
uniforms,” Raines says.
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| Photo Courtesy of Baptist Health |
More than 30,000 pieces of Vestex’s staff uniforms, lab
coats and scrub jackets are being distributed in phase one and will feature
Vestex textile technology. Over 6,000 Baptist Health inpatient staff, with
frequent patient contact employees, including nursing, imaging, respiratory
therapy, and environmental service members, have been transitioned into the new
uniforms. Staff uniforms are also
color-coded by function so patients can more easily recognize who is
caring for them per specialty. While wearing the uniforms was voluntary
throughout mid-July and August, on September 1, all staff will be required to
wear the Vestex clothing, explains Raines.
“The initial rollout includes Baptist Jacksonville, Wolfson
Children’s Hospital, Baptist Nassau, Baptist Beaches, Baptist South, Baptist
Clay Medical Campus, and Baptist Home Health Agency,” Raines says. Other
Baptist-owned facilities, such as its ancillary Baptist Cancer Institute and
several neighborhood outpatient clinics and physicians offices have also
expressed an interest in the high-tech uniforms.
Vestex Scrub Repelling Water and Fluids. Courtesy of Baptist Health
“In addition to our new staff uniforms, in late September
and through October, we’ll be rolling out patient apparel featuring the same
technology,” Raines continues. “We’re
providing upgraded hospital gowns, with a double-enclosed back, more pockets
and access apertures, as well providing our new ‘basketball’ tops and shorts to
patients that don’t require a gown.” This will be another landmark move for
Baptist Health Jacksonville as it will also be the first to have Vestex patient
apparel as well.
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| Photo Courtesy of Baptist Health |
“Patients ages one year and older will receive
newly-designed apparel made from Vestex-protected fabric that provides them
with dignity as well as protection.” She emphasizes that, “Baptist Health is not
making the change because of a problem with infection, but to be proactive in
our use of technology to enhance our environment. The technology is part of a
broader safety strategy designed to reduce exposure to pathogens.”
The more than $1 million Baptist Health Jacksonville has invested in providing
Vestex staff uniforms and patient garments represents its commitment to safety
and its brand promise of “Changing Health Care for Good.”
Summary
In this article, I discussed two of the pathogens that have
been in the news as of late: the Ebola virus and MRSA. I pointed out that while
Ebola remains a challenge for several portions of Africa, the actuality of it becoming
widespread in the U.S. remains remote. MRSA on the other hand, continues to be an
ongoing concern. This article continues by sharing an innovative step that
Baptist Health Jacksonville has taken in partnership with Vestagen Technical Textiles to
widely adopt specialized staff uniforms to repel fluids and minimize the risk
of transmission of infectious diseases. If you found this article useful, please
feel free to share and repost it. If you have any questions or comments, as
always, I’m eager to read them.
Rick Fromme
combines entrepreneurial enthusiasm with an insider's knowledge of the medical
industry to co-found MedMasters.com. Both
his drive and perspective helps provide health care professionals with a
superior mechanism with which to communicate, network and market their
strengths. Prior to founding MedMasters.com, Rick
operated a highly successful medical device distributorship. Other milestones
in his 12-year career in the medical industry include a key position at a
medical device start-up company that was later sold to the Ethicon
Endo division of Johnson & Johnson. You may also reach Rick
by connecting with him on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube.
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I think this was an extrodinarily savvy and proactive move by Baptist Health Jax. Glad to know the fabric technology is available. Hopefully more hospitals will follow suit.
ReplyDeleteI have actually had the experience of working with a Baptist Home Health nurse who recently made the transition to the new scrubs. It's good to know they will be developing patient attire with the same features!
ReplyDeleteWhile I wasn't worried about the Ebola scare, I had no idea so many lives were impacted (and ended) by MRSA, or that health care professionals' uniforms played such a role. Frightening stuff.
ReplyDeleteIt isn't just contagions such as Ebola that can cause havoc. Even simple staph infections have been know to cause loss of life in hospitals all over the country. It's amazing how something so tiny could become such a BIG problem.
ReplyDelete