The Quincy Veterans Home in Quincy, Illinois has unveiled a new water system designed to combat Legionnaires’ disease. An August 2015 outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease at the home sickened 53 people and caused 12 deaths. (Read our blog post for more about this outbreak.) During the outbreak, residents drank bottled water and avoided showers as officials disinfected water tanks with chlorine and shut down potential sources of the bacteria. As investigators noted, the veterans’ home posed several challenges to officials as they sough to stop the spread of the disease. The sprawling, 200-acre campus contains 48 buildings, making efforts to identify and…
Legionella bacteria in the water supply of the Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh likely caused a cancer patient to contract Legionnaires’ disease. Officials previously believed that the patient, now recovered, had contracted the illness elsewhere, but new tests show that the bacteria originated in the hospital. After a cancer patient who had previously been treated at the hospital was readmitted with respiratory problems at the end of May, doctors tested the patient for Legionnaires’ disease. (Click here for our original blog post on this story.) The test was positive, and the patient was treated and made a full recovery. At the…
A recent investigation into a pneumonia death in Flint has demonstrated the need for hospitals to release Legionella test results and for diligent testing of patients at risk for Legionnaires’ disease. In a June 28 article for Bridge Magazine, Chastity Pratt Dawsey reports on the case of Bertie Marble. Mrs. Marble, a 68-year-old resident of Flint, Michigan, passed away in March 2015 after a spell of ill health. During her final stay at McLaren Regional Medical Center in Flint, Mrs. Marble was diagnosed with “healthcare-associated pneumonia”. McLaren had found Legionella bacteria in its water system in late 2014 but had not revealed…
A birth center in southern England has been cleaned and will soon reopen after having closed for the second time this year because of positive tests for Legionella. Paulton Birth Centre in Somerset was closed for maintenance in early June after a sample of water was found to contain Legionella. The bacteria was found in a section of the center that does not serve patients directly. Now, the water system has been tested again after a cleaning and no Legionella has been found. A spokesperson for the center’s owner, NHS Property Services, said that the water system had been thoroughly…
A new website aimed at spreading information about Legionella and Legionnaires’ disease has recently been launched. PreventLegionnaires.org provides basic facts about disease transmission and prevention, and offers advice to managers and businesses on how to manage risk and implement plans to keep Legionella in check. The website also offers downloadable resources specific to healthcare facilities and industrial or commercial buildings. PreventLegionnaires.org is published in association with the CDC and a number of health organizations, and it is funded by several companies that produce cooling towers. Cooling towers have sometimes been to blame for the spread of Legionella. For more…
Michigan’s former chief medical executive had been briefed on potential Legionella contamination nearly a year before the information was made public, though he later denied having been involved in discussions about potential water contamination. Dr. Matthew Davis was the chief medical executive of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services until his departure in April 2015. He was later appointed to the Flint Water Task Force by Governor Rick Snyder. At the time of his appointment, legislators voiced concerns that his prior involvement with Snyder’s administration would create a conflict of interest as the task force investigated the water contamination. Davis…
Reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease are down in Flint, Michigan after the city changed the source of its water supply. The Flint River has become synonymous with lead contamination, but the city’s water supply was also home to dangerously high levels of Legionella bacteria. The spotlight on lead allowed the 2015-16 outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, the largest outbreak in recent times, to go relatively unnoticed. Over 90 people were sickened in Flint, 12 of them fatally, over an 18-month period. Experts have linked the outbreak to the city’s tainted water system. The finger-pointing debacle that ensued between government agencies…
Recent guests at a North Carolina hotel have contracted Legionnaires’ disease and hotel managers are taking steps to control exposure. Three individuals who stayed at the Meadowbrook Inn and Suites in the mountain resort town of Blowing Rock, NC have tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. All of the affected guests had stayed at the hotel within 10 days before the onset of their symptoms, and all have undergone treatment and are recovering. The Meadowbrook Inn has a comprehensive water management system in place, including regular testing of water features such as pools and hot tubs. When the disease was reported,…
Testing last week revealed that the water system of a hospital in Pittsburgh, PA has been contaminated with Legionella bacteria. Allegheny General Hospital conducted tests for Legionella in their water supply after a cancer patient tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. The patient had been discharged on May 20 for respiratory problems but had been readmitted four days later after a relapse; a urine test revealed that the patient had been infected with Legionella bacteria. Though hospital officials believe that the patient had been exposed to the bacteria outside of the hospital, they tested the hospital’s water supply and discovered Legionella…
Senior living facilities in Maryland and New York have reported the presence of Legionella bacteria, leading in some cases to Legionnaires’ Disease. A resident of The Commons, a senior living facility in Auburn, NY, tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease in early June. Officials conducted tests and found that the facility’s drinking water was contaminated with the Legionella bacteria. The facility has taken preventative measures to control the bacteria, following guidelines established by the New York Health Department. No new cases of Legionnaires’ disease have been reported. The Lutheran Village in Elliot City, MD has reported that two of their residents have…