LAKE COUNTY ? Pronounced “mursa,” MRSA is fast becoming an all-too-common acronym. It stands for Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus, an antibiotic-resistant staph ?superbug” found in our communities, our schools, on our hands and in our nasal passages. Lake County has had a significant increase in staph infection cases over the past few years.
Recent national news reports have made MRSA infections known to a wider audience, and in Lake County, a recent scare that proved unfounded provoked anxiety among parents and students at Terrace Middle School. But registered nurses in the area say MRSA”s notoriety is positive, as it can help educate the public about the growing problem.
According to Lisa Valdez, RN, infection control coordinator at Sutter Lakeside Hospital and Center for Health, since 2004, SLH has “seen a 100 percent increase in patients arriving at our hospital outpatient areas with community-acquired MRSA.”
Many people can carry MRSA in nasal passages or on skin and not even realize it. It can wreak havoc with a person”s health if it finds its way inside the body through a skin abrasion. MRSA infections can lead to painful boils, flu-like symptoms and sometimes death.
This increase is not specific to Lake County though, Valdez said. “This is part of a national trend that we are just beginning to experience.” Community-acquired MRSA refers to staph contracted outside of the hospital, as opposed to infections spread within hospitals from patient-to-patient due to unsatisfactory sanitization practices of hospital staff.
It is estimated that 2-3 percent of the general population are now colonized with MRSA. Populations who live in communal situations, such as in prisons or the military, have a five percent colonization rate. Lake County”s two hospitals, Redbud Community Hospital and Sutter Lakeside Hospital, say they are equipped to control the potential spread of infections.
“We have extensive infection identification and strict infection control procedures to isolate all suspected infections and keep them from spreading?and we”re very good at it,” said Mary Nielson, Redbud”s Director of Marketing. “Our hospital-acquired infection rates are less than one-third the national average.”
As schools around the country begin to learn about the growing and worrisome problem of MRSA, schools in Lake County do have resources they can tap. The ?Healthy Kids Are Contagious” program at Sutter Lakeside Hospital and Center for Health has a middle and high school program that directly addresses MRSA education and prevention. This program targets schools because the close contact of students puts them at risk. Students are also notorious for not washing their hands regularly; the most important factor in curtailing the spread of the MRSA bug, said Tammi Silva, SLH Wellness Center and Foundation Director and hospital spokesperson.
“We saw the potential for serious MRSA problems in our schools and sports programs and created and implemented a program last school year to address the need to educate kids and their families,” Silva said. The program, called ?Playing it Safe” brings nurses and doctors directly to schools around the county to educate students in the 7th-12th grades. Through a dramatic PowerPoint presentation and interactive discussion, students learn what MRSA is, and the simple steps in preventing it. “Though the results of MRSA can be scary, our presentation empowers kids instead of frightening them,” said Carrie McClure, School Site Coordinator for the hospital program. “We present the facts and stress to students that they have the power to create their own good health through good hygiene and making their body strong through good nutrition, exercise and positive thoughts. Kids are listening and sharing the information we give them with friends and family.”
The ?Healthy Kids are Contagious” program also implements a hygiene program for first graders called ?Flu Crew to the Rescue.” Though not directly aimed at MRSA prevention, the same hygiene measures that keep you from contracting the flu work for preventing the spread of MRSA; wash your hands and body thoroughly and often with soap, don”t share personal items such as towels, water bottles, P.E. uniforms, and sports equipment and keep your body healthy for the times those nasty germs do sneak in. If you would like to know more about the Healthy Kids are Contagious program please call Carrie McClure, School Site Coordinator at 262-5039×1.
Contact Elizabeth Wilson at ewilson@record-bee.com.
