MEDIA RELEASE
For Immediate Release
August 27 , 2013
LONDON, Ontario – An Alert Level Two/Outbreak has been called for C. difficile at University Hospital, 4IP – General Medicine.
An Alert Level Two/Outbreak is when there are three or more cases of hospital C. difficile on a specific unit. Two cases were identified in one corridor; additional cases have since been confirmed in adjacent corridors for a total of six cases on the 4th floor.
“Over the past year, many successful initiatives have been implemented to further improve our infection safety rates. We are pleased with the significant advances in our C. difficile rates,” says Dr. Michael John, Medical Director, Infection Prevention & Control. “We are continuing with aggressive measures to prevent further C. difficile transmission, including enhanced surveillance for case identification and enhanced environmental cleaning.”
All visitors and families are encouraged to exercise extra vigilance when it comes to hand hygiene compliance, using hand sanitizers upon entry and exit of the hospital, and especially before entering and leaving the 4th floor.
In collaboration with the Middlesex-London Health Unit these cases have been reported as an outbreak, utilizing the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care’s criteria for public reporting.
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About London Health Sciences Centre
London Health Sciences Centre has been at the forefront of medicine in Canada for 138 years and offers the broadest range of specialized clinical services in Ontario. Building on the traditions of its founding hospitals to provide compassionate care in an academic teaching setting, London Health Sciences Centre is home to Children’s Hospital, University Hospital, Victoria Hospital, the Kidney Care Centre, two family medical centres, and two research institutes – Children’s Health Research Institute and Lawson Health Research Institute, a joint research initiative with St. Joseph’s Health Care London. As a leader in medical discovery and health research, London Health Sciences Centre has a history of over 65 international and national firsts and attracts top clinicians and researchers from around the world. As a regional referral centre, London Health Sciences Centre cares for the most medically complex patients including critically injured adults and children in southwestern Ontario and beyond. The hospital’s nearly 15,000 staff, physicians, students and volunteers provide care for more than one million patient visits a year. For more information visit www.lhsc.on.ca
Dr. John will be available for media interviews tomorrow morning, August 28, 2013.
For media inquiries contact:
Scot Magnish
Corporate Communications and Public Relations
London Health Sciences Centre
519-685-8500, ext. 77062
After-hours assistance:
Call LHSC Switchboard at 519-685-8500 and ask to page the communication consultant on-call
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