Guest guest Posted January 3, 2011 Report Share Posted January 3, 2011 http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/01/02/890496/common-no.html Editorial Common? No State public health officials say they know what was responsible for the fact that there was an outbreak of hepatitis B in a North Carolina assisted living facility this year, in which six patients died of the disease at Glen Care Mount Olive, a Wayne County center. It wasn't carelessness or reckless disregard for residents, said Henry, spokesperson for the Division of Public Health. " It's really ignorance, " she said. In other words, the workers who were helping diabetics test their blood sugar levels with glucometers just didn't know they weren't supposed to use the same needle-like devices to obtain a blood sample for a test on more than one person. So after months of putting people at risk, a deadly reality came home to roost. The hepatitis B had spread. Officials of the company that owns the facility dispute the state's conclusions. Gap in standards As reported by The News & Observer's Goldsmith, those who work in assisted living facilities fall into, or perhaps that should be fall through, a curious gap in regulation. While those who administer insulin in nursing homes, where care is more intense and oriented toward medical needs, must be highly trained nurses, people who work at assisted living facilities can be " med techs " who are not licensed and have received very little training. Yet those med techs may deal with many, many people at the understaffed facilities. <CUT> Read more: http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/01/02/890496/common-no.html#ixzz19yfoCqOm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 3, 2011 Report Share Posted January 3, 2011 http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/01/02/890496/common-no.html Editorial Common? No State public health officials say they know what was responsible for the fact that there was an outbreak of hepatitis B in a North Carolina assisted living facility this year, in which six patients died of the disease at Glen Care Mount Olive, a Wayne County center. It wasn't carelessness or reckless disregard for residents, said Henry, spokesperson for the Division of Public Health. " It's really ignorance, " she said. In other words, the workers who were helping diabetics test their blood sugar levels with glucometers just didn't know they weren't supposed to use the same needle-like devices to obtain a blood sample for a test on more than one person. So after months of putting people at risk, a deadly reality came home to roost. The hepatitis B had spread. Officials of the company that owns the facility dispute the state's conclusions. Gap in standards As reported by The News & Observer's Goldsmith, those who work in assisted living facilities fall into, or perhaps that should be fall through, a curious gap in regulation. While those who administer insulin in nursing homes, where care is more intense and oriented toward medical needs, must be highly trained nurses, people who work at assisted living facilities can be " med techs " who are not licensed and have received very little training. Yet those med techs may deal with many, many people at the understaffed facilities. <CUT> Read more: http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/01/02/890496/common-no.html#ixzz19yfoCqOm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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