The Safe Patient Project is a Consumers Union campaign focused on eliminating medical harm, improving FDA oversight of prescription drugs and promoting disclosure laws that give information to consumers about health care safety and quality.
Following a bike accident, Jimmy Jr. needed knee surgery hoping to be strong enough to play high school football. Instead he acquired MRSA (methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), a contagious antibiotic-resistant infection. Three years and nine surgeries later, Jimmy Jr. spends most of his time in bed unable to move comfortably. “Everything is different now,” said his father, Jim Toolen of Sumter, SC, who also pays the price for this potentially deadly infection. He contracted MRSA while caring for his son’s open wounds.
Last year, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported that approximately 94,000 people develop serious MRSA infections each year and almost 19,000 of them die. 86% of these MRSA infections are picked up in hospitals and other health care settings, like nursing homes and dialysis centers.
The Toolen family shouldn’t have been punished for going to the hospital, but fortunately, more people are noticing the devastation MRSA can cause. If Governor Schwarzenegger signs SB1058, which is now on his desk, California will become the fourth state to require hospitals to screen patients for MRSA on admission. The three other states are Illinois, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Research published earlier this year in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that universal screening is associated with substantially reduced rates of MRSA clinical infection. Skeptics have said universal screening would “limit a hospital’s flexibility to design infection prevention programs” but most hospitals have been too lax in protecting patients. Patients deserve better.
Unfortunately stories like the Toolen’s are not unique. The spread of MRSA must be stopped. As mentioned, New Jersey passed a MRSA screening law in 2007 that will screen all ICU patients for MRSA, and establishes some procedures to prevent the spread of MRSA through the hospital. The law also requires hospitals to report to the State Health Department the number of MRSA infections they identify. However, at this point, that information will remain in the hands of the Health Department. AARP New Jersey is working to have these numbers included in the public reporting that will soon be required under another state Hospital Infection Reporting law. If the hospitals are keeping track of MRSA cases, and the Department knows these numbers, why shouldn’t the public be made aware!? If you want a copy of NJ’s law to use as a model, or want to get involved in our efforts to make these numbers public, call AARP New Jersey, or contact me. Let’s work together to make MRSA history.
I have worked in a local hospital in the town where I live There were a lot of things I saw, a lot of things overheard, like gossip from nurses about some of their patients. But as far as dealing with infections, in “that” hospital or any other, I saw plenty of obviously “overlooked” or ignored situations in my local hospital some years ago when my favorite Aunt was re-admitted for medical problems caused by her doctor’s own neglect. And it was because of what this particular doctor had done, medically & surgically, that put my aunt in a state of “septis”. At one other point when my aunt was re-admitted back into the ICU for a second time within the same admission time-frame, I was with her. The first thing I noticed there and then, were feces stains on the floor, and some other “yellow” spots or stains on the floor. Not liking what “I” personally saw, and out of great consideration for the welfare of my aunt, I immediately called for “Housekeeping” to come up to that particular area/room, pointed out all the “unhealthy”, “unsanitary” conditions, and requested that the room & floor(s) be cleaned. The other two incidents which may or may not have also “added insult to injury”, were that the water nor the swabbing mouth sponge used were ever “clean”, until I changed that. And the other issue I had was with the Respiratory Therapist, who, if I had not been there, was planning to use & re-use the breathing tube thing which I could clearly see from 3 feet away, that this “tube” (having been used on my aunt previously) was filled with some kind of awful looking junk. I requested that the R.T. get a clean one because I was afraid that “these ongoing medical tactics/procedures” might further add to my aunt’s already critical condition. I called two meetings regarding the care of my aunt, or the lack thereof: One with the Hospital Administrator, the second was with six department heads. Of course & unfortunately my aunt did die, in “that” hospital, and I and another aunt were right there when she passed. When the doctor finally came in “to call the time of death”, a half hour after the fact, I also gave “him” a piece of my mind. So much for certain medical professionals who think they’re God(s). And I just hope to heaven, I’m never a patient in any hospital ever again! I wonder if any of them can be trusted!
Thank you for letting me rant a little.
my name is james toolen. i had mrsa in 2005 till 2006. i am still battleing it i have had nine surgeries on my right knee(pcl). im 18 years young lol but i was robbed form my teen years. so lets put an end to mrsa by getting the word out.
james toolen
Hi Jimmy,
It’s mom’s friend Linda. Remember me? I’m sorry to hear your still suffering,struggling and in pain with your leg. Please tell mom, dad and Sammy hello for me and mom to email me.
Linda
Hi Jimmy, I talked to your mother and wrote a story about your MRSA infection, and your Dad’s, for Plexus Institute, about two years ago because we were working on a project to stop MRSA. I am so sorry to hear you are still suffering from the ravages of this awful infection.
Hi Jimmy,
You do not know me. I am an old friend of your father’s. I am so very sorry to hear about this happening to you. I know it has been a long while and I do hope this e-mail finds you better and your family well. If there is anything I could possibly do to help at this point, please let me know.
Sincerely
Kathy
That is really sad.
I hope here, in Arizona, they will require hospitals to screen patients for MRSA. A few years back, my grandma was having health problems and went to the hospital… long story short… she got mrsa on her hand and never recovered and passed away.
MRSA is not something we just ignore and hope it goes away. We need to do something.
When all the “polling” is done as to where, how and what hospital
was infecting patients with such as MRSA, you can bet we the “people” won’t see the results, example: what hospitals are the worse, infections determined , etc. The Medical industry
still “protects it’s own”. How about it Consumer report, let us
see these results.
Preparing to keep oneself healthy is always part of the plan, its terrible to think complications such as these can arise. MRSA is something that is hopefully avoidable and hopefully something can be eradicated. Knowledge is power, the more we know about issues such as these the better we can prepare for them.