MRSA Question

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My sister and I are both nurses. I'm an O.R. nurse in Michigan, she's a Med/Surg nurse in San Diego. A week ago she was bitten by her dog and went to the local urgent care to have it looked at. It was cultured and she was put on antibiotics and given a week off from work because of the open wound. She was just notified that the wound cultured out with MRSA. Her antibiotic was changed to doxycycline (allergic to Amoxicillin) and not given any specific details when to return to work other than the week she originally recieved. She is worried about returning to work, still being infectious, etc., because she works with immuno-compromised patients. Does anyone know how long it takes the antibiotics to eradicate MRSA in a puncture wound? How would they be able to tell when she's no longer infective? She talked to the urgent care Dr. and the pharmacist who dispensed the doxycycline, but neither of them could tell her what she needed to know. Does she need to have repeat skin swab/cultures? I've never dealt with this, so I'm clueless as to what to tell her too.

Thanks for any input...

Kellijojo

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We have had a few cases of MRSA at the nursing home where i work, and i know that the residents with it had to have a recheck to see if it was still active. The way it's been explained to me is that the MRSA is always present once you get it, but it is not always active. I have a lot of questions about this, my clinical instructor is having someone speak to us this week during clinical about MRSA, so I'll let ya know if I find anything out!

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MRSA is a big topic now adays my advice is to talk to her hospitals infection control nurse.

RH

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MRSA is a big topic now adays my advice is to talk to her hospitals infection control nurse.

RH

This is a good idea, I'll recommend it to her. Thanks!

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Specializes in Med-Surg.

I would definately have her contact employee health for their policies. It might be that when she finishes the course of antibiodics and is off of them for 48 hours, she will need to be recutlured. That's how we remove patients from MRSA precautions here. They have to be off of antiobics for 48 hours and then culture negative.

Good luck.

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There's a couple of great medical research pieces going on over seas for staph patients!

http://www.caercoork.com/orsa/news.html

I've also updated my ORSA site, including a BLOG. The BLOG is a great outlet. I highly recommend journaling of some form!

If they cure this today, you will want a record of what it was like for your grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Think of all the people that lived through polio and our kids don't know what the word is! They think it's a game you play in the pool invented by a kid named Marco!

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We have had a few cases of MRSA at the nursing home where i work, and i know that the residents with it had to have a recheck to see if it was still active. The way it's been explained to me is that the MRSA is always present once you get it, but it is not always active. I have a lot of questions about this, my clinical instructor is having someone speak to us this week during clinical about MRSA, so I'll let ya know if I find anything out!

Yes MRSA does colonize and some become carriers after infection, this is my understanding. I am dropping th CDC site.

http://www.cdc.gov/search.do?action=search&queryText=MRSA&x=19&y=12

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My sister and I are both nurses. I'm an O.R. nurse in Michigan, she's a Med/Surg nurse in San Diego. A week ago she was bitten by her dog and went to the local urgent care to have it looked at. It was cultured and she was put on antibiotics and given a week off from work because of the open wound. She was just notified that the wound cultured out with MRSA. Her antibiotic was changed to doxycycline (allergic to Amoxicillin) and not given any specific details when to return to work other than the week she originally recieved. She is worried about returning to work, still being infectious, etc., because she works with immuno-compromised patients. Does anyone know how long it takes the antibiotics to eradicate MRSA in a puncture wound? How would they be able to tell when she's no longer infective? She talked to the urgent care Dr. and the pharmacist who dispensed the doxycycline, but neither of them could tell her what she needed to know. Does she need to have repeat skin swab/cultures? I've never dealt with this, so I'm clueless as to what to tell her too.

Thanks for any input...

Kellijojo

I'm a UK RN and it's interesting reading all your posts re MRSA. This "superbug" as we call it here is rife in UK hospitals. I personally treat every patient as a possible carrier and take the necessary precautions whether they have been confirmed or not. The protocol here is that after 3 'clear' swabs, the patient is deemed MRSA free, but as one of the previous posts suggests, it's possible that it's always there lurking in the dark :uhoh3: Sorry to sound all doom and gloom but if we all practice safely and implement the correct procedures the risks are sure to be minimised

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