legionaires in Paediatrics anyone hear this?

galwaygirleen

Got phone call from husband who had heard that there was an outbreak of legionaires disease at the Paediatric Unit at UCHG, rang admission they said they hadnt a clue, they had heard anything. Was put through to Paeds and i asked were they taking in paitients or was it closed due to outbreak, they said closed.

My query was would the out paitients be affected because i was due to bring daughter up for blood test for this lead contamination, she told me some clinics were on. I found this difficult to take it because, paeds is linked with paeds outpaitients via a corridor isnt. Legionaires air bourne? Can someone shed some light on this ? Not risking my child to exposure!

soundbyte

http://www.galwaynews.ie/5258-traces-deadly-bug-found-children039s-ward


Traces of deadly bug found in children's ward

Legionnaire's Disease bacteria detected in hospital taps

A POTENTIALLY deadly bug has been detected in the water supply of the children’s ward at University Hospital Galway, the Galway City Tribune can reveal.

Unacceptably high levels of bacteria responsible for causing the potentially fatal Legionnaires’ disease were found at water points in the Paediatric Department at the city hospital last week.

The Department will have to be partially shut down for various periods on a phased basis during the next six weeks in order to deal with the source of the contamination. The Health Service Executive admitted that this is the sixth time abnormally high readings of Legionella has been discovered at water points in different departments of UHG so far this year.

Tests on water points at St Teresa’s Ward, St Pius Ward, St Anthony’s Ward, the Nurses Home, and the Psychiatric ward at UHG throughout 2008 all showed abnormally high levels of the infection.

The HSE West has stressed that, to date, no patients have been identified with Legionnaires’ Disease – however, the revelation is a further blow to Galway’s ailing health system and comes just days after chaos reigned at UHG, where on Tuesday, 44 patients were left languishing overnight on
trolleys waiting for admission to the ‘Third World’ A&E Department.

A spokesperson for the HSE said as soon as the abnormal readings of the bug were discovered in the Paediatrics Department last week it immediately removed the affected sinks from service and “there is no ongoing risk to patients”.

A full re-plumbing programme in the Paediatrics Unit will begin next week which will be done on a phased basis and this will ...

Mrs OBumble

galwaygirleen wrote: »

legionaires disease ... Not risking my child to exposure!

Ahh, yeah, right.

The design of hot water cylinders in the vast majority of Irish homes means that virtually everyone is at risk of exposure.

In first world countries, domestic hot water systems that involve a tank of water are heated all day. The tank is required to be at least 55 degrees, and when someone removes water from the tank, the replacement water is heated immediately.

Ireland, however, was a poor country 'til very recently. You couldn't afford to heat the water all day. So instead the water heats overnight when the electricity is cheaper, everyone gets up and has a shower in the morning, the remaining hot water mixes with replacement cold water, and the tepid mixture sits there all day, at just the right temperature to grow bacteria.

Building regulations now say that houses need to have at least one electric shower. (No tank = vastly reduced risk, 'cos the water isn't sitting around hot.) However in almost all houses I've seen, the electric shower is in the primary bedroom's en-suite, and the main bathroom (ie the one the children use) is not electric.

(see here for some more detail about the topic in general: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_heating#Water_heater_safety )

Between this, the lead water pipes, the lack of sun that causes SAD and vitamin D deficiency, etc etc ... ahh, Ireland's a grand place to be living!