In any hospital, one of the most dreaded enemies is MRSA. This super-resistant pathogen laughs in the face of most antibiotics. But now, medical and hygiene product manufacturer Lohmann & Rauscher may have developed an efficient weapon to fight this ugly beast: a wound dressing that contains polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB).
UNIQA, Austria's leading health insurer* recently initiated a preventive inspection of the technical water lines and systems at around 40 of the hospitals it insures, to identify any possible contamination by Legionella bacterium. Following the inspections many of the hospitals opted to undergo TÜV certification. Their motivation is not only medical concern, but also economic and legal issues.
The NHS is still suffering from wide variations in infection control standards, according to a survey of health staff in the UK. The study carried out by the watchdog body the Healthcare Commission, after questioning more than 155,000 NHS staff, indicated that there had been improvements in infection control in several areas.
USA - Urging public health and infection control officers to be proactive against Legionella and other waterborne microbes that contribute to soaring hospital infection rates everywhere, international Legionella expert Janet Stout PhD* warned.
UK - Whilst the life-threatening Clostridium difficile is not absolutely resistant to antibiotics, after an individual has been infected the bacteria often reappears.
The project “Clean Hands” is Germany's contribution to the WHO initiative “Clean care is safe care”. “Clean Hands” aims at improving hand hygiene in German hospitals in order to significantly reduce nosocomial infections.
In bronchoscopy and gastroenterology, reprocessors are commonly used to provide a quick availability of endoscopes. However, ENT departments do not dispose of dedicated material, according to the French company Soluscope Group, which manufactures endoscope reprocessors and the detergents used to wash and disinfect them.
The Japanese hygiene products specialist SARAYA has been in business for half a century. Today, its products are still at the cutting edge.
UK - Results from a National Health Service (NHS) trial, which investigated the effectiveness of silver at reducing levels of bacteria in an actual hospital setting, have been announced by BioCote Ltd, manufacturer of antimicrobial products.
UK - A new range of benchtop ultrasonic cleaners are being launched at MEDICA by manufacturer Ultrawave.
During modernisation previously installed machines in contaminated hospital sluice rooms must comply with the same Medical Devices Act requirements as new machines, the specialist firm Meiko Maschinenbau GmbH & Co points out.
The 134-bed private hospital Dr R Schindlbeck private hospital in Herrsching am Ammersee, Bavaria, which also has a large out-patient department, provides 110 units for use after hand washing by staff, patients and visitors. From the Katrin range by Metsä Tissue, Finnish producer of paper towels and dispensing systems, they consist of paper towel rolls and dispensers.
Komet Medical has developed rotating and oscillating instruments since 1923.
Fortunately, the influenza virus has not swapped over to Germany yet because the country has enough to do with the norovirus which is expected to attack up to one million people during the next weeks. People affected by the virus suffer from strong nausea and diarrhoea that last at least two days.
Sysmex urine fluorescence flow cytometers offer a wide variety of clinical benefits to the user, including determination of WBC, bacteria and yeasts to exclude urinary tract infections and/or inflammations very quickly.
The new single door PG 8527 and two door PG 8528 large-cabinet decontamination units for instrument reprocessing (on sale from March 2007) adapt easily to changing workloads in hospital CSSD units and a variety of other needs, their manufacturer Miele reports. Both units use either the firm's new OxiVario or OrthoVario disinfection programmes.
TopLine, the new range of bedpan washers/disinfectors from Meiko set new standards.
Currently, the only bedpan cleaners with a totally sealed wash-chamber are the TopLine appliances made by Meiko.
One of the largest renal programms startet at Leicester General Hospital, part of the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust.
To establish which materials allow pathogens to survived best, micro-organisms such as bacteria living in wet and dry environments, pathogenic fungi and the bacterium Escherichia coli, have been studied during comparative tests undertaken at the Hygiene Institute of the University of Leipzig.
Is a sharp weapon being blunted? Article by Heidi Heinhold.
The Japanese firm Saraya, which for 50 years has successfully manufactured hygiene products and programmes for healthcare, facility management and the food industry, has launched a touch-less hand disinfection unit in Europe. According to Mr ter Woort, General Manager, Saraya Europe, the company has already sold over 100,000 of these units in Asia & the USA.
The Europe-wide research by Westminster University, England and T.Ü.V. Rhineland, Germany, has proved the advantages of hand wiping with paper rather than with textiles or warm air.
Austria - A call for the EU and national governments to establish and extend a legal framework for environmental standards in society and healthcare facilities was made by the organisers of `CleanMed Europe´, the first European conference to focus on sustainable healthcare products and practices.
