Instruments and
equipments used in hospitals and office like
mobile phones and computers
are colonised with antibiotic resistant bacteria.
Stethoscope ,
aurascope (otoscope) &
ophthalmoscopes
used by doctors and nursed to examine and clinically
diagnose illness are also colonised. Studies published in medical journals point
fingers at
stethoscope as one of the major contributing factor
in spreading bacterial infections.
Biocides
(antiseptics & disinfectants) used to prepare skin and clean equipments
are found to be useless in controlling infections and has also found to
increase bacterial colonisations.
We must
go back thirty years and see how we managed patients without these
instrument. Healthcare professionals have forgotten why these
instruments are used and how to use them. They have become the status
symbol more than necessary
We were
educated to diagnose children with heart disease without using a
stethoscope. “The most important part of a stethoscope in not the
diaphragm nor the make, but the part between the two ear pieces”. This
we have cherished and practiced for more than twenty five years and
still came out triumphant when others failed to diagnose a simple
clinical symptom or disease
We feel
sad to see doctors and nurses take out their stethoscope from their
bug-filled handbags and place them on the chest. They seem to think they
can diagnose what is wrong with the patient, when they could just check
the pulse and probably tell more about the clinical condition. The past
twenty years, most clinicians have dangled the stethoscope and made this
synonymous with the word “Doctor” and so patients are demand using a
stethoscope.
It looks as if we
have forgotten the important steps of clinical examinations "observation,
palpation and percussion and then finally using auscultation to confirm
diagnosis".
Based on present
evidence of MRSA colonized in medical instruments, we will soon be
fighting legal battles due to claims brought in by patients accusing us
of using unsterile stethoscope or an outoscope.
Practical
Procedure
Practical procedures like inserting urinary catheters, central venous catheters, venipuncture and intra venous cannula create an entry point for bacteria to enter blood
circulation. Peripheral venous cannula
are the most frequently used device in the hospitals. One in 8 patient
(70%-80%) entering hospital is treated via cannula.
The problem can be made worse by poor compliance with
hand cleaning and other hygienic practices by healthcare staff, multiple
punctures and using ported cannulae. We strongly feel this significant local or bloodstream
infection associated death could be
prevented if the healthcare professionals take adequate care when they
introduce a cannulae or catheters, especially in emergency situations
and stop using ported iv cannulae.
Modern healthcare employs many types of
invasive devices to help patients recover. Such devices bypass patients'
natural defenses against invading micro-organisms. Therefore, use of
these devices has been linked to infections of the lung, bloodstream,
and urinary tract.
Common practical procedures like
introduction of create an entry point for bacteria to
enter blood circulation. Peripheral venous cannula are the most frequently
used device in the hospitals. One in 8 patient (70%-80%) entering
hospital is treated via cannula.
Millions of venous cannulae are used
universally; in UK 17.5 million ported cannulae are used every
year. Since 1962
doctors have been using these devices without properly evaluating the
consequence. The incidence of significant local or bloodstream infection associated
with peripheral venous cannula is said to be higher than initially
estimated. 60% of these devices are discarded due to failed cannulation.
This result in contaminated hospital waste which allow bacterial
colonies to thrive in hospital environment.
The problem can be made worse by poor
compliance with hand cleaning and other hygienic practices by healthcare
staff, multiple punctures, and using ported cannulae. In one study, 60%
of doctors and nurses failed to was their hands properly before
performing a practical procedure. We strongly feel this significant local or bloodstream infection
associated death
could be prevented if the healthcare professionals take adequate care
when they introduce a cannulae or catheters, especially in emergency
situations.
CA-MRSA colonized in the hands of 1 in
3 health person. This is often introduced through skin into bloodstream
when performing any practical procedures. We feel it is important to
prevent entry of MRSA through puncture sites and introducing MRSA into
blood stream during practical procedures.
