A resident of a county-run nursing home in Pennsylvania was diagnosed on October 24 with Legionnaires’ disease, and officials believe she contracted it from her residence. McKeesport Regional Care Center, where the woman lives, has taken measures to guard against the possibility of further cases. The woman was hospitalized and diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease at UPMC McKeesport. After being informed of the case, management at McKeesport RCC distributed bottled water and put the water system at the nursing home out of commission. They also sent a letter informing patients and their families about the diagnosis. Management also sampled water from 20 locations throughout the building. 12 of the water samples tested were positive for Legionella bacteria. McKeesport RCC management has now installed a copper-silver ionization disinfection system, which they hope will eliminate Legionella from the water. Other county-run nursing homes in the area have now chosen to install similar systems. Up to 10 other patients who have presented with respiratory issues also underwent testing for Legionnaires’ disease; eight of these results were negative, and two are pending. More information is available here. Update: A previous version of this post erroneously stated that the patient resided at UPMC McKeesport. The patient was treated at UPMC McKeesport, but was a resident of McKeesport Regional Care Center. Jules Zacher is an attorney in Philadelphia who has tried Legionnaires’ disease cases across the U.S. Please visit LegionnaireLawyer.com again for updates.
Pittsburgh-area nursing home patient tests positive for Legionnaires’ disease was last modified: November 8th, 2016 by