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the Demand for smittevernutstyr has skyrocketed as koronaviruset has spread around the world.
It has also led to a lack of equipment at several hospitals in Norway.
Last week had Hospital – one of Norway’s largest hospitals – to take action and when bearings were about to go empty. Monday introduced the hospital rationing of surgical masks.
This was, among other things out of the staff that work with so-called MRSA-patients – patients with bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. To save on smittevernutstyr specific smittevernoverlegen that they should not use a face mask.
Fearing infection
the cleaning staff did not wear a face mask at the care of the rooms after the patients had been there.
This led to strong reactions from a number of nurses, auxiliary and cleaning staff at the hospital, says assistant foretaksverneombud at the Hospital, Michael this photo in an engaged.
– The employees feared to even become infected by MRSA. It to become infected can have a major impact. Both in terms of further infection, and because the health workers who are infected should not have pasientkontakt, says this photo in an engaged to NRK.
Violations of the national guidelines
medical director Pål Wiik, at the Hospital says that routine use of surgical masks by all contact with MRSA patients was disregarded, because it considered that it did not entail significant risk for the staff.
Photo: Birgitte Wold Ingebretsen / NRK
In the national recommendations as the Norwegian institute of public health and the Norwegian directorate of Health has made, it says that you have to use surgical face mask when you are brushing patients with proven or suspected MRSA. Patients should also be isolated.
If health professionals get proven MRSA infection, they should not be working with patients in hospitals or nursing homes before they are smittefrie again.
medical director at the Hospital, Pål Wiik, says to NRK that the hospital had to break the guidelines because of the special situation with the shortage of equipment.
– to ensure that there was enough surgical masks to employees who would be working with suspected or proven covid-19, we were in the mentioned period will have to make a priority.
– Is it acceptable that employees are not using the face mask with MRSA-patients?
– Yes, we believe it is prudent. To the orientation is not used a face mask routine by MRSA in Sweden and Denmark, ” says Wiik .
By the isolation of MRSA followed the institution’s procedures for the isolation described in the infeksjonskontrollprogrammet. The recommended regime by MRSA is kontaktsmitteisolering on alone, with the addition of the use of surgical face mask.
MRSA wizard
Have to make the reviews
– the Situation at the Hospital join a number of examples where healthcare professionals fail to maintain the usual standards, because one is overwhelmed kapasitetsmessig of koronautbruddet, ” says professor Gunnar Skov Simonsen. He is head of department for infectious disease at the University hospital of North Norway (UNN), and also leads the Norwegian surveillance system for antibiotic (NORM).
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Simonsen don’t think the lack of surgical masks by the treatment of MRSA-patients poses a very great risk for disease transmission, but specifies that it is a violation of the professional recommendations.
– When it is recommended a face mask, it is of course a reason – it is because we think it works. At the same time, we need in health care relate to reality, where we have a lack of equipment. In this situation we can’t do things the way we think they should be done. It is caused by that beredskapsarbeidet with respect to the supply of the equipment in general has been poor before the pandemic, ” says Simonsen.
Understand the decision
Petter Elstrøm at the Norwegian institute of public health confirms that it is recommended to use a face mask at the care and the reing of beds where the patient has proven or suspected MRSA in Norwegian hospitals. It is because the MRSA to a certain extent, may be transmissible through the air, when the infection attaches to the dead skin cells that blown up.
Read also: Norway has got a large load with smittevernutstyr from abroad
Elstrøm still has the understanding that the Hospital passed away from the face mask in this situation.
– It is easier to avoid MRSA infection than, for example, infection from respiratory infections. This applies as long as you do other measures, such as using gloves and good hand hygiene.
Elstrøm he says fear other things more than MRSA, if there is an acute shortage of smittevernutstyr forward.
I’m probably more concerned about the handling of patients with more contagious diseases, in addition to the patients with Covid-19. The implementation of the necessary operations can also be put in danger.
the Hospital went back to regular practice when they got the supplies of surgical masks on Tuesday this week.
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