MRSA scare !

mamunsey · Oct 24, 2007

What they should be doing, instead of playing up the sensationalism, is instructing the public why this is a problem in the first place. I'd like to see serious reports on the over-use of antibiotics in our food supply; how important it is to take antibiotics as ordered (not just til you "feel better") and for God's sake, to STOP demanding an antibiotic for every damned sniffle--- that's the reporting I'd like to see.
All those years of irresponsible antibiotic use...It's all coming home to roost. And it's only going to get worse.

Ditto , we have several cases of MRSA at a local high school, and is spreading everywhere! none at my school though!

Toquay · Oct 24, 2007

Sensationalism definately sells! MRSA is a resistant strain of Staph Aureus (part of our noraml body flora) that has become resistant due to over use of antibiotics. I know 10 plus years ago I read an artical that over 40% of healthcare workers are colonized with MRSA. I am sure this percentage is much higher now. The primary areas of colonization are the nares, axilla, and perineum. MRSA can infect other other areas such as the respiratory tract and blood stream. In a healthy person MRSA does not usually cause any problems but in a immuno-compromised person (cancer patients, aids patients, the elderly and the young, etc.) it can. As mentioned in other posts, the best defense is HANDWASHING and I mean handwashing EVERYWHERE especially out in the community (schools, malls, workplaces, etc.). As nurses we should be gowning, gloving, and masking when dealing with any risks of being splashed by irrigated wounds, trach care, vented patients, coughing sneezing patients that do not cover their faces etc. In other words think about what type of patient you are dealing with and protect yourself as well as that patients and future patients you are to see.

MRSA is a very hardy bacterium that can live on surfaces (doorknobs, phones, keyboards, etc.) for very long periods of time. Special cleaning of the environment is needed to reduce risks. Now think about hospital environments... stretchers(and I mean the whole stretcher), wheelchairs, pt lounges, pt rooms (door knobs), IV poles and pumps, stethoscopes and all used by "sick" people 24/7. How clean is a hospital really? Vancomycin, I think is the only antibiotic for MRSA treatment, and God forbid it become resistant to that. Until then practice safe, hand gloves and PPE to to co-workers and stay healthy.

Toq

anonymurse · Oct 24, 2007

Just wondering if you who work in the hospital/LTC facilities are seeing and increase in CA-MRSA. I work as a school nurse and the panic among teacher's and parents is unreal !

Not to mention the impact on unit productivity when people go to the ED because they think they have MRSA and the docs write contact orders on the patient's suspicion (of course they have to to protect themselves). There must have been some decent TV exposure lately because we had a "contact admission night" recently (actually that's what a pt told me, she'd seen all about CA-MRSA on TV and that's why she came in...well of course the EMT and ED reports said the CC was CP!)

woody62, RN · Oct 24, 2007

I wonder what I should do. My oldest granddaughter is on her high school's diving team. She recently went to the regional dive meeting. And right after she returned, a student, in the next county, was diagnosed with having an MRSA infection. My goodness, maybe she had been exposed. Maybe she even has gotten it. What should I do? What should I do?

On second thought, I'll go look up the story about the plane that crashed into the Edison Mall. No one was hurt but I would love to hear more about the story. It took the place of the MRSA one.

Woody:balloons:

Emma123 · Oct 25, 2007

Just curious:

My son wants to wrestle this year. He already had a staph infection on his hands and had to get an antibiotic (bactrim)...it cleared up, thankfully. We assumed d/t football, locker room, dirt, you name it. Now he wants to get down and dirty (ie: skin to skin contact with God knows who or what), and I'm thinking I don't want him to. My judgement is torn between the nurse and the mom in me. We've had the "infamous superbug" already in our schools media-hyped and all. But the mom in me just wants to protect him. He's good and mad at me that I told him I'm on the fence with the decision. What would you do, as a parent?

Thanks,

Emma

time4meRN · Oct 25, 2007

i know, it's getting a bit redculouis. i'm soooo sick of the media i could just scream...... between mrsa, politics and mis reporting about anything they get a hold of. our er waiting area becomes more and more crowded everytime a news program comes on about mrsa, bird flue etc... so on and so on. we do see alot of mrsa skin infecions. but most stay as sking infections unless the person is immunosuppressed. we did see a septic mrsa pt the other day. she was really sick, prob. will end up intubated, etc.... but , she was in bad shape before she got the abscess on her belly. i also get sick of all the comercials advertising anibacterial this and antibacterial that. the human race would be better off letting our bodies work a little to keep the bugs away. ( once again, the media)

HyperRNRachel · Oct 25, 2007

What they should be doing, instead of playing up the sensationalism, is instructing the public why this is a problem in the first place. I'd like to see serious reports on the over-use of antibiotics in our food supply; how important it is to take antibiotics as ordered (not just til you "feel better") and for God's sake, to STOP demanding an antibiotic for every damned sniffle--- that's the reporting I'd like to see.
All those years of irresponsible antibiotic use...It's all coming home to roost. And it's only going to get worse.

YES! I work in the ER and we get many, many, many people who come in wanting antibiotics for EVERYTHING! I cannot tell you how many times I have had a patient tell me " well I started running a fever an hour ago so I took some antibiotics that I had left over". YOU SHOULD NEVER HAVE ANTIBIOTICS LEFT OVER! Parents also need better education, 90% of ear infections are viral and yet parents demand antibiotics.

We live in an instant gradification society and people do not want to be sick or treat symptoms for longer than a day. PURE CRAZINESS.

perfectbluebuildings, BSN, RN · Oct 25, 2007

I agree with Emmanuel and everyone who is ticked with the media. Why did this suddenly, overnight, become a huge story?? I really can't figure that out. MRSA has been a problem for quite a while, and not much has changed in the past, like, two weeks that I can tell...