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| Category: Conditions, Ailments and Diseases |
Date published: March 21, 2007 |
MRSA: My Father's Legacy
by CarolAnn Bailey-Lloyd
 My father's death certificate was labeled "natural causes." My family and I knew better, however. No average 59-year old dies from "natural causes" when a pacemaker was still going after he technically passed away. We all watched in horror; helplessly not knowing what to do - and the hospice worker wasn't much help either. She sat at our dining room table, filling out paperwork and watching the time hand on her wrist. The only dialogue she could offer were "they know when you're around, and they won't leave if you're right there beside him." Stark and solemn are about the only words I could use to describe the mood in the house. My mom was beside herself in shock...actually, we all were.
Flashback: Just two years before, my father was diagnosed with myocardial infarction (heart attack). This came after a previous heart attack he had suffered nearly a decade earlier. In very early 2003, I can recall my father being prepped for quadruple bypass heart surgery at a hospital, we'll simply refer to as "Richland" (one of the closest heart centers in the midlands). He had been referred there by his long-term heart physician, Dr. Alexander. My father was a full-time, respected law enforcement officer, and also a retired army first sergeant; so he was able to obtain healthcare services at the military base in Georgia. At the time, however, there was an issue with blood contamination and he was forced to have the surgery at Richland.
An otherwise healthy and active correctional sergeant, dad and grandpa, my dad shivered at the thought of going under the knife. But Dr. Alexander assured him that this was a regular procedure carried out at the hospital and that this was the only way they could save his life. Of course hindsight is 20/20 and had he not had the surgery at Richland, he may still have been with us today.
Living in South Carolina, it is one of the many states that didn't have to report MRSA (methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus) infections to the CDC (Centers for Disease Control). But in a recent report [1] published by AARP (American Association of Retired Persons), "Pennsylvania and California are among the states leading the way - in the past three years, 14 states have passed laws requiring hospitals to report information about infections to the public." In 2008, "all state hospitals in South Carolina must disclose the rates of patients who develop infections during hospital stays."[2] This sadly comes 4 years too late for my dad and the countless others who have succumbed to MRSA.
In retrospect, I recall having surgery at that same hospital a couple years earlier for a shoulder subluxation. The next day I had to return to my primary healthcare provider for a hospital-acquired staph infection in my lungs. I was one of the lucky ones and was able to catch it before it got out of hand. Just a few years prior to my surgery at the same hospital, my mom had a hysterectomy there. Her stay was lengthened due to none other than a staph infection. Of course we didn't think about our previous experiences because all we were focused on was saving my dad's life.
I can recall my dad telling us how he didn't feel comfortable with the ensuing surgery at Richland, but we never thought twice about it. Just that his life was at stake and he needed the surgery, as Dr. Alexander had told him.
Just weeks prior to his surgery, my dad had been pulling a full shift at a state correctional facility and was nearing his golden years to spend the rest of his life with my mom. What a future they still had together. After the surgery, my dad was in ICU (intensive care unit) in the heart ward at Richland. His heart surgery had been a success; or so we thought. Shortly thereafter, he was sent home with a bandaged chest wound (from the surgical incision) and no antibiotics We had asked the staff about this surgical site and were told to have him come back to have the site checked from time to time at the hospital. After the bandage had been removed by hospital staff, he was sent home with a presumably cleared incision site. Later, it was discovered that the sight had begun oozing puss - not a good sign at all. My mom immediately took him back to the hospital where he was diagnosed with a "staph infection," which was supposedly, according to the staff, "air borne." We were never informed of what type of infection until we personally examined his medical records and found that he had acquired MRSA. God - if we had only known how terribly lethal this was at the time. Again, hindsight is 20/20.
MRSA is not selective. Just this past December, a 28-year old, single mother went into the local hospital to have two spinal discs fused. Three weeks later and four days before the Christmas holidays, the young woman collapsed in her parents' home; shortly thereafter, Lacie Simmons was dead. Autopsy reports found that an infection had taken her life.[3]
Three weeks...imagine that. Some folks aren't that lucky. Some succumb more quickly to MRSA than just three weeks; while others, like my father die slow, grueling deaths over a period of a couple of years. MRSA is a brutal infection that wrecks havoc on just about every organ in the body. When a person does have a vulnerable immune system (due to certain health conditions such as heart disease, diabetes or renal disease), MRSA can maneuver its grips throughout the body at a snail's or hare's pace. This greatly depends on medical response and ability to combat the infection. No two persons are alike. No two hospitals are either.
According to the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths (RID), (a non-profit organization that is dedicated to providing safer, cleaner, hospital care) found that while infections are worsening, "a few hospitals in the U.S. are proving that these deadly drug-resistant infections are nearly all preventable."[4] How? RID offers a 15-step, easy-to-follow program that if used consistently, can help to protect you and your loved ones from unwittingly getting a hospital-acquired infection.[5]
The use of "hospital report cards" is a surefire way to put a stop to this growing epidemic. Fortunately, since some states have now begun to pass laws that force hospitals to report the incidence of hospital-acquired infections, they (hospitals and other medical centers) will now be held accountable for the many deaths that have occurred at the hands of careless practices. While patients and patients' families may not be able to seek damages, future patients will have the option to select safer, cleaner medical services at reputable hospitals that bolster better hospital report cards.
Because infection-reporting has not been made mandatory by the CDC (Centers for Disease Control) we can never fully know the actual rate of death that hospital-acquired infections have caused. However, from the little statistics we do have, an estimated 103,000 people die every year in America, alone. [6] This doesn't begin to include the financial cost of over thirty billion annually in added costs to not only healthcare providers, but to us, the taxpayers and victims as well.
Unfortunately, too many innocent lives have been taken due to an otherwise preventable infection, but it is good to know that we are not alone. Today, strides are being made to enforce preventive measures, and research efforts are underway to find improved means of not only preventing the spread of infection but to save precious lives.
In addition to rudimentary preventive measures, in a recent report on the BBC, copper can be a unique ally in the war against MRSA. Researchers, Dr. Jonathon Noyce and Professor Bill Keevil found that MRSA could not survive on copper surfaces for more than 90 minutes. That still sounds like a long time but compared to up to 72 hours on stainless steel, the potential for spreading this super-germ is greatly reduced.[7] In an effort to prove these findings, Selly Oak Hospital in Birmingham, UK will be "swapping steel for copper in an 18-month trial." We can only hope that this will be yet another way to effectively combat MRSA.
In reflection, I tried numerous times to contact the public relations director of "Richland" to find out how many others had perished from MRSA. I even emailed the PR staff and pleaded with them to not let this happen again...to anyone else. I never got a response. I imagine that many changes are underfoot while I write this article. Since the law has been enacted to report hospital-acquired infections, I presume that the hospital staff is now getting adequate training and re-education in proper hygiene and disease control - a little late for my dad and countless others. But maybe, just maybe, this state can too become an example for all the other medical facilities that continue practicing without prevention.
© 2007 - All Rights Reserved
MRSA: My Father's Legacy
Report by CarolAnn Bailey-Lloyd
Other Articles/Resources:
References:- Dirty Hospitals: Two million patients are infected in hospitals each year and 90,000 of those Americans die, by Katharine Greider; January 2007
- The State Newspaper: S.C. hospitals launching patient safety initiatives; by John Monk; January 28, 2007
- The State Newspaper: Deadly germs take grim toll in hospitals; by Jan Jarvis; McClatchy Newspapers; March 18, 2007
- Join the RID Clean-Up Team; www.hospitalinfection.org/; Besy McCaughey, Ph.D.
- 15 Steps You can take to Reduce Your Risk of a Hospital Infection; www.hospitalinfection.org/protectyourself.shtml
- Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths; Essential Facts You need to Know about Hospital Infections; www.hospitalinfection.org/essentialfacts.shtml
- BBC News; Copper Surfaces can Kill off MRSA; http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/health/3867781.stm; Published: 2004/07/05 23:30:47
Resource Box: CarolAnn Bailey-Lloyd - Former staff writer for HolisticJunction.com, Educational Resources for Healing Arts Schools, Natural Healing Schools, and other Alternative Medicine Schools.
DISCLAIMER: Thist articles is intended for informational purposes only and is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or health care provider. Please consult your health care provider for advice about specific medical concerns and especially before you begin any type of new health regimen.
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