"...'Cuz growing up is awfuler

than all the awful things there

ever were . . ."

Peter Pan

� Is this the legacy we're going to leave our children? I hope and pray not.

� Children learn by our example, as everyone knows.

� Below are some factoids that I've picked up during my career, and some thoughts to go along with them.

CDC and WHO (the World Health Organization) estimate that 80% of CONTINENTAL Africa will be dead by the year 2010 from infectious diseases. And the estimates for the population of Thailand are similar.

I don't understand the reasoning of a pregnant CNA who refuses to practice proper glove use and hand washing during an outbreak that is killing residents and causing staff to come down with pneumonia. What value does she place on the health/life of her unborn child?

If you flush the toilet without the cover down, the force of the flush can fling microbes as far as 8 feet from the bowl. Where do YOU keep your toothbrush, etc.???

Bacteria/fungi/viruses/etc. multiply at alarming rates in foods that are not properly stored. Food DOES NOT have to look/smell/taste bad to be infectious.

There have been cases of vancomycin intermediate resistant staphylococcus aureus in this country. Vancomycin is the antibiotic that's generally given when NOTHING else will work. PLEASE stop insisting that your doc give you an antibiotic when he/she says you have a�virus. Take antibiotics EXACTLY as prescribed, and FINISH the prescription. STOP giving antibiotics prescribed for you to other people. If we don't stop these, and other common practices, people are going to start dying of infected pimples, boils and carbuncles. Is this the legacy you want to leave your kids???

During a VERY informal survey at an infection control conference, I monitored the�hand washing of female attendees. (No notes were taken - I didn't want to be TOO obvious!) What I�noticed was that only about 25% of those using the bathroom washed their hands afterwards. And of those who did, most did not follow proper hand washing technique. And these are the people who are supposed to teach us how to protect ourselves from infectious diseases! Do they think their own microbes aren't just as infectious as yours or mine???

Why did the American Association of Pediatrics come out with a statement that said we don't need to routinely test our children for tuberculosis when there's a TB epidemic in this country and the majority of our children are at high risk for becoming infected???

Those of us who are baby boomers, or older, can remember having TB tests and head checks for lice as a routine part of the first week of school. Did you know that head/body lice are now resistant to the medications generally used to treat them? (And, contrary to popular opinion, head lice prefer CLEAN hair, not dirty hair.)

Fifty percent of teenagers will have their first sexual experience between the ages of 12 and 14. Have you talked to your children yet? Do they have ACCURATE and Up To Date info on sexually transmitted diseases? Do YOU?

Observation: Most medical people who aren't involved in infection control don't recognize an outbreak until it smacks them in the head and has a direct impact on THEIR lives and the lives of their staff.

Observation: Most physicians aren't up to date on current practice guidelines regarding treatment of infectious diseases.

Just because someone is over 60, when they present at the emergency room with a temp it DOES NOT mean that they 1. are constipated; 2. have a�urinary tract infection; 3. are dehydrated. Please, those of you who work ERs, stop practicing age-based prejudicial treatment. The elderly are people, too.

We've had 3 cases of septic gallbladders in the last 5 years where I work. All 3 were sent to the ER. All three were treated for urinary tract infections. PLEASE!!! They're doing well enough at working on dying by themselves. They DON'T need additional help! (All three were sent back, treated properly and survived, by the way. AFTER we insisted on basics like a surgical consult.)

The above is not an indication of the quality of care here. It's indicative of how the elderly are generally treated in this country. NH is not the only state I've worked in, and I've seen this happen in every state I've worked in.

Why do staff think infection control nurses lie in bed at night and dream up things like 1. wear your gloves and wash your hands; 2. it's not going to bother you because you're healthy, but it could KILL your immunocompromised patient; 3. don't worry about taking it home to your kids - they're colonized with it anyway, according to statistics; 4.�linen DOES NOT belong on the floor, up against your body, slung over your shoulder, etc.; 5. yes, you DO need to go and wash your hands because you've just coughed/wiped your nose/rubbed your eyes/shut the faucet off with your bare hand.

Why should I lie to you??? Do you think I want to get sick? My child to get sick? The paperwork and the overtime that goes with an outbreak? Be serious! Outbreaks, on top of the devastation they can cause to residents, are a pain in the butt for infection control nurses.

Bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, etc. make up 2/3 of the world's living population. And they don't want to die anymore than WE do. And they're more adept at mutating than we are. Why don't people believe that we're engaged in a world-wide war with these things? AND WE'RE LOSING!

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