# 428 - Tea Bag to the Rescue

Yesterday I had a typical traumatic experience at the dentist for a couple of extractions that were necessary. My dentist is a long-time family friend and a big-fingered brute who loves his job. Of course, I walk in and he dreads the visit because I'm one of those complicated patients.

So, the shattered tooth is being removed and this one is the worse; the assistant has to stand behind me with her hands pressing under my jaw to stabilize my head/jaw as the dentist digs and pulls, then drills, then pulls some more, all while I am trying to keep my legs from doing the air-bicycle motions.

Anyway, I felt better once it was finally over! The dentist was wiping sweat from his brow. I was so numb that I couldn't feel my ear.

However, at home, later that night, my mouth came ALIVE. I kept gauze compresses in my mouth, kind of biting down to try to stop to constant bleeding; however, it kept going all night and that kept me up, mostly at the sink or at the freezer for a fresh ice-pack. Deputy Dave slept on the couch so I could do somersaults on the bed all night, as needed. Not fun.

My dad tells me, "Put a tea bag in your mouth, on the gum, and it will help the swelling." So, I tell Deputy Dave to keep the morning tea bag for me to use, after it cools down.

I decide, in my desperation, and in my exhaustion, to give it a try. Initially, I realize that my small mouth has trouble allowing the tea bag to fit into my mouth, so I leave part of it hanging out. After all, these are TEXAS-SIZED tea bags and I have a Rhode Island sized mouth!

I lay in bed, in misery, with a pounding jaw, a tea bag hanging out of my mouth, and Deputy Dave is laughing so hard that he has to turn his head to not see me so he can regain control of himself.

Thanks Dad! It worked for a while, but I think I need another tea bag. There's always tomorrow morning's tea to look forward to. Maybe that tea-bag-mouth-session will show the tag hanging from my bottom lip.

For the next two days, I don't think I will be packing for our move; I won't hardly be moving a muscle because my heart has re-located to my gum. Besides, there aren't ENOUGH tea bags to get me through this misery, so I am reading, watching movies and blogging...because crying doesn't help!

Ouch eey ya ya!

# 358 - Klebsiella Pneumonia Bacterial Infection Battle

Life sure has its ups and downs. Some of us seem to drift through life without as many challenges as another person. Other people have the slightest hurdle and they crumble. Others, such as myself, run toward the hurdle and know that I'll likely fall on my face, but I still have the passion and drive to do my best to conquer it.

Another part of life that is certain is the yin and yang that is always present. It seems that we can be in the midst of the greatest time of our lives while something disastrous is simultaneously occurring. I have had this message drilled home to me, personally.

A few months ago, this past summer, I went to see several doctors about pain in my pelvic/bladder area. One test led to another. Eventually, I ended up seeing a doctor that I wrote about visiting and being horrified to realize would mean that I'd be reclining in a torture-chamberish chair for tests I didn't know existed.

A few weeks later, around June, I received a call from this doctor's office to let me know I had this bacteria that was indecipherable to me, so I asked the nurse to hold for a moment...I needed to get pen and pad to write down the weird name she was giving me. I knew there would be no way, phonetically, for me to figure out the spelling of this term, so I had her spell it out, I repeated it back and confirmed that I had written it correctly.

I said to the nurse, "Klebsiella pneumoniae? That's weird, especially because my experience with your clinic proved you guys have nothing to do with the lungs." The nurse said, "Well, we just had to let you know what the report said, but the bacteria in this form doesn't have anything to do with your lungs so it's not to worry about. It's a bacteria in your body, but it's no big deal. Just follow up with your regular doctor in a normal fashion. This is really insignificant; there's nothing to even be done about this, so I wouldn't worry about it."

Before hanging up, I asked the nurse to send me a copy of the report and to send my regular physician a copy of this report...after all, I'd already filled out the release of information form for this doctor's office to send the report to my regular physician. I had to fill out a 22 page packet before that doctor would see me, so I did more than ample paperwork to include the HIPA paperwork to allow release of their findings to my regular doctor...with my signature in place to authorize the release before I even walked in to the room to be seen by the doctor.

There should have been no problem with that area of information sharing. I did my part. I authorized it, in writing. I expected any issues to be sent to my main doctor, as is procedure. Otherwise, why would they even include a release of information form to be signed upon your arrival for your first appointment? The paperwork was specific in allowing my regular doctor to have access to my medical records from their office. There should not have been a problem for them to forward it to my regular doctor, they had written permission on file.

Little did I know that this doctor's office would do everything in their power to keep the report from being seen by my Internal Medicine doctor and they would do everything to keep me from getting a personal copy of MY report.

Over the past few months, I have called this doctor's office at least eight times, to repeatedly ask them to send the report to my regular doctor. I had researched the word and didn't like what I found but the nurse again told me, upon a second follow up call, made by me, that it was nothing to worry about. Still I would insist a copy be sent to my regular doctor, the nurse would agree, we'd hang up and nothing would be done. I guess she thought I'd eventually go away, somehow.

However, upon most of my phone calls to this office, I was transferred to the nurse's voicemail...I'd leave a detailed message and I would not get a response. Why hasn't my report been sent to my treating physician yet? You guys told me to follow up with my treating physician about this report that you are not allowing him the advantage of seeing for himself!

Needless to say, big surprise, this doctor's office never forwarded the lab report to my regular doctor. In spite of frequent requests to honor the paperwork for release that they already had on file to authorize the release to my regular doctor, they wouldn't do it. I admit, in the back of my mind, I began to think that the nurse's assurance that this bacteria was no big deal had to be accurate. After all, if it had been a big deal, that doctor would surely have prescribed me medicine or spoken with me directly about the diagnosis. Isn't that how "good" doctors function?

Meanwhile, I am feeling worse and worse. I am becoming more exhausted. I have days of running a low-grade fever of around 100 degrees. To combat the increasing sense of unwellness, I start telling myself that perhaps I need more rest, after all, I do have Addison's disease and perhaps this is the reason I am feeling so run down. So, I force myself to start taking naps. However, the extra rest doesn't seem to help. And, I still feel terrible aches in my pelvis region and back.

I call my regular doctor a couple of times and ask if they happened to have received a lab report from this doctor I had visited. No, there isn't a report. They've not yet heard a whisper from the doctor who ran the tests that showed I had "Klebsiella pneumoniae." They need to see it in black and white. The tests I endured were indeed awful and not easy to endure, not easy to repeat, not even something a regular doctor is equipped to conduct. The specialist had been a women's pelvic health specialists...her tools here definitely specialized. Needless to say, I was not jumping up and down at the prospect of repeating tests that were already conducted with results on paper...paper that simply needed to be shared with my regular doctor.

I wait and keep hoping the pelvic health doctor will follow through with her obligations and instructions from this patient. I cannot stand over their shoulder. I've done my part. How can I force them to pull my file and punch numbers into the fax machine so the information can be shared? I begin to think it might have been a bad mistake.

Life moves on. I focus on my daughter's upcoming wedding. I have afternoons where I force myself to drag into motions that are "normal" and do my best to "fake it until I make it." However, it's becoming increasingly difficult. Something is really wrong and it's becoming hard to not face it. But again, I've done MY part. I went through God-awful tests and the barbaric doctor received a lab report...the doctor's offices have called and said everything is okay. They spell out the word Klebsiella Pneumonia with the flippant comments that it's nothing to worry about, specifically telling me there's not even a need to prescribe antibiotics. Why should I be worrying?

Main problem...if a diagnosing doctor has conducted tests that required laboratory results...How can that testing be of benefit if that doctor refuses to share critical health information with the patient's main treating physician? Even if the report has harmless information in it, the report provides a base-line of health information that is important to a patient's overall medical record.

Red Flag Day: I was reading online news and came across information about a "SUPER-BUG" and the name of the Super Bug that had killed multiple people in one of our country's leading teaching hospitals, multiple deaths in ONE WEEK...the bacteria was called "Klebsiella Pneumoniae." I believe I read this about three weeks ago.

Of course, this report was shallow and without a true understanding of this bacteria, but all I know is that I read that headline report running across the Yahoo news reports boxes...and the word hit me like a brick. In confusion, I made an immediate blog post. I have awesome readers who often know more about medical conditions than I could ever hope to understand. My emails are incredible and enlightening. I had hope. It was late in the day and I could do nothing with the information about this Super Bug anyway.

That week, I also began to call that diagnosing doctor again. Same results. False promises. No one can come to the phone that can be of immediate assistance. No calls in return. No lab report being produced for me to see with my own eyes or for my doctor to see with his own eyes. For some reason, I am less and less trusting of their over-the-phone assurances and constant promises to send the report to my doctor and becoming a tad bit panicked.

Then, I get additional information from a source that is in the field of researching this bacteria and am led to better understand what I am dealing with and how to go about getting the right answers. This person is my angel. I'm not kidding.

So, armed with more knowledge about this bacteria than before, the Friday before last, I walked into my regular doctor's office and filled out one of their release of information forms. I told the head nurse of my doctor's office about the entire situation; I spoke with her about the other doctor I had seen...the one who continually refuses to release my lab results. She helped me fill out the form that would order that doctor's office to hand over the report.

I told her that their office had already been given paperwork to release my medical reports tothem, but they continually failed to do so. She assured me she'd make sure they complied. I told her, "Well, I've filled out releases for THEIR office to send it to you guys; now I'm sending another release from the other end and I guess we'll see what they do." The head nurse for my doctor's office told me, "We have to see the report before we can treat you for anything; let's get the report and make sure a mistake hasn't been made...your doctor can't do anything until he sees a confirmation of what they've told you." I agreed. My doctor is actually responsible and needs to KNOW what he is treating, and he needs to have verified medical reports to assure himself he is taking the best course of action for my health. I wished the head nurse good luck and made an appointment to see my regular doctor, allowing for about a week in between to give time for the lab report to be sent to them for review.

I'm sure there is no surprise as to what happened. I had an appointment to see my regular doctor today, to discuss the lab report that was to be sent by the diagnosing doctor's office. Yesterday, I called my regular doctor's office to make sure the report had been sent. I didn't want to have a wasted office visit. Of course, they were making their own efforts to get the report and had to tell me that it had not been sent, not yet. Now, I am angry. I called the uncooperative diagnosing doctor's office, was put through to voicemail and this time I didn't leave a message, I hung up and called right back and I told them I would keep calling back until they sent over the lab report to my regular doctor as I had been trying to get them to do for MONTHS. They decided to get the elusive nurse on the phone with me.

Lo and behold, more excuses. She even had the audacity to try to tell me that I did not have a RIGHT to a copy of MY lab report; she told me that I could spend $35. to get a copy. My polite, accommodating demeanor disappeared. I informed this nurse that I had spent a decade of my life working for top civil attorneys in Texas and that I was well informed about HIPA laws. I reminded her that I had already provided them with a release of information to have them send my reports to my regular doctor and they had not fulfilled their obligation to do so. I have also filled out a second release to come from my regular doctor and it had been sent over a week ago, so she had ten minutes to get the report faxed or I would show up at their office by that afternoon to hand-carry a copy of a letter of complaint that will be sent to the American Medical Association. In addition, I reminded her that it is VERY EASY to locate the lab that their office uses and for me to go directly to them to get a copy of the report, but if I have to go through those lengths to get a copy of my lab report to my doctor, then it will look extremely negative on their behalf.

All of a sudden, she becomes compliant. She faxes the report to my doctor along with becoming saccharine sweet in giving a flourish of excuses for not releasing the report. Then, she tells me that the doctor had wanted to do more procedures and I had not been compliant, but had cancelled those appointments. I explained, "If you can tell me one good reason I'd return to the very office that runs tests, then does not share the results with my regular doctor, then I will make an appointment. But, based upon how your office has been extremely uncooperative from this first set of labs, I find it completely unhelpful to my health to go to a doctor who does not follow through with their obligation to help the patient."

Disconnect.

After this unpleasant experience. I quickly called the head nurse of my regular doctor to confirm the receipt of the lab report and SUCCESS! Why does it take some people to understand you are going to FILE on them for them to act responsibly? At this point, I am still going to report this doctor to the AMA. Too little, too late has not benefited my health. After months of battling the uncooperative doctor who had nothing more to do to help me other than to run tests and drop the ball, I had finally got a step closer to answers, but I am now alarmed at their negligence, especially after learning what the medical report really disclosed.

And that leads me to this morning, As I sat with my doctor and his sparkling new physician's assistant, the two of them looking at the lab report attached to the front of my bulky medical file...I see my doctor start to vigorously rub his eyes and his forehead. He doesn't look happy. I told him about having to go through an Act of Congress to get the lab report sent to him and he looks at the date of the report, over four months ago, and he starts rubbing his forehead again. He sits with eyes closed.

Hello?

Since I just arrived at my doctor's office. I've still not seen the report. I'm not getting the feeling that it's definitely not good. He told me he confirmed that the diagnosing doctor had not prescribed any antibiotics and that he could offer absolutely no reasonable explanation as to why that doctor would have ordered these tests, got these results and not started immediate treatment.

Then, he explained, "You now know the reason you've been feeling so crappy? How in the F*CK could this doctor have been so stupid?"

And now I realize that my doctor is thinking outloud, he does that, it's part of the reason I adore him. You don't have to wonder what he's thinking, he's straightforward and doesn't try to hide his thoughts with a prescribed bed-side manner. By the way, it's the first day on the job for the physician's assistant. I don't know if he's heard the doctor use the "F" word with other patients, but he's figuring out that I'm one of those who gets the big dose of reality.

My doctor continues, "This report shows you have an infection and it's certainly not a bacteria that will go away on its own, it's a big deal, especially because of the level of infection you have in your body."

The he glides over to me as he sits on his doctor-approved rolling chair and points to the medical report while reading outloud, "RESULT: Heavy growth of Klebsiella pneumoniae."

I stare at the page, I then immediately look to the top of the page for my name, making sure it is right. I can't believe it.

He says, "If this was cultured with a result of having "heavy growth" four months ago, and this bacteria is not easy to battle, your body certainly won't be able to handle it by itself, then this explains the reason you've been getting sicker and sicker. You feeling so crappy isn't because of Addison's disease, it's become this infection is becoming worse and this damn doctor didn't even call me or send me a copy of this report, so I have to wonder...Why were they were trying to keep it a secret?"

Turns out, we all agreed that the doctor somehow missed reading the report closely, even though it is easy to read, even for a lay-person. The conclusion mightily suggests that this doctor didn't follow through, then tried to hide the fact that they diagnosed me with this bacteria, maybe as a way to distance themselves from this bacteria and the potential legal problems that will arise from them not handling it right away, properly. For their office to even tell me that it was "no big deal" and that it did "not require antibiotics" was a complete health-threatening response.

Then, my doctor shocked me further by showing me the second page of the lab report. Not only did this doctor have the results that showed I have Klebsiella pneumoniae, they had been "good enough" in their culture to have the lab run detailed testing of the cultures to see if the strain of this bacteria was antibiotic resistant or not AND to detail a list of SEVENTEEN antibiotics that they cultured to determine which antibiotic could have had a chance to battle the infection. My doctor points to one that showed some effectiveness, "And here is the antibiotic that worked best in the petri-dish, a medicine that is "F-ing" readily available, affordable, and could have helped you tremendously, a long time ago...Cipro."

For me, I kind of blurred over. Is the room getting cloudy or is it just my vision? I could not believe this doctor's office had this information the entire time and PURPOSEFULLY withheld it from me and from my treating physician.

For a moment, we even discussed litigious behavior of some doctors and his willingness to back up any action that might be needed because of their failure to follow through.

The one thing that stands out in my mind is that this doctor might have been attempting to cut any ties of possible links to this bacteria, just in case she does her part to spread it around to others. Not being able to trace a patient with this bacteria would lessen their own liability with a potential outbreak due to the invasive tools they use in their offices. My own medical record might be the link to HER infecting others from her own office procedures. Maybe she is not so confident about their own santization procedures? I have to wonder. If I had this bacteria, then the next person examined is treated without proper disinfectant procedures...I shudder to think about the ramifications, especially since this is a bacteria mostly spread in medical facilities.

Germs sure are ugly things invisible to the naked eye. If only we could see the little boogers when we walked into a room...well...maybe it's better that we not live with such horrifying realities.

This office had such resistance to forwarding my lab report that I can only be leery of their reasons. Who cites HIPA laws to a patient who has done EVERYTHING to abide by them already? If I'd not been a patient who is more understanding of these laws, perhaps I would have been further deterred by the suggestion that I must come BACK to their office, in person, fill out the paperwork I've already completed once already, and pay $35. for the report.

Also, I have to admit, if I had not read that news report nor have been alerted by someone studying this bacteria, I might have heeded this doctor's office and their flippant attitude during the original call to give me the "result" of this lab and to tell me antibiotics WERE NOT NECESSARY, even though the lab report itself stated a full account of antibiotics that would or wouldn't be effective in combatting it. And, it is obvious from the lab report that this bacteria is going to be difficult to battle.

We discussed running another culture, but my doctor said he really felt we shouldn't waste any more time, we already know I have it and that it needs to be TREATED. Starting today.

He assured me that I wasn't contagious. The good thing about the location of the bacteria is that it is not a communal way of transmitting. I was initially devastated and began to feel panicked about who I might contaminate and he assured me that unless a person is sharing a catheter with me and they have a weakened immune system, I won't be able to spread this bacteria, but he smiled and said, "It's nice of you to think of others, but you're going to have your own hands full with battling this infection and if it hits your bloodstream, then...well...we won't think about that right now, let's just say this is not good for YOU."

We discussed running another culture after my first round of antibiotics. After the antibiotics are out of my system, we can run more cultures, compare the levels to the first report to make sure we're making a dent. Then, we can start on another round of antibiotics. It's going to be like trying to put out a fire that keeps trying to flare, but there's no amount of water to completely extinguish it, so you just keep trying and hope you don't run out of water.

Since my daughter is getting married this coming Saturday, I am thankful to have more information. My doctor thinks that after a few days of being on the antibiotics, I will definitely feel better than I feel right now. He said he's always amazed at how I can continue to keep going in spite of hurdles.

Yes, even if I keep running and battling and having to knock down the hurdles, I keep at it. What is the alternative?

And...I am very fortunate to have the loving support of several family members and friends and blog buddies who know what it means to suffer, yet not give in to the what-if part of the equation. The worst case scenario might be presented, but I keep fighting back against the odds.

Additionally, I've not really dealt with hard-core unsupportive people until recently, during this very scary battle. I was actually told by someone that they thought I should be dead by now because of this bacteria, so they didn't believe I had it. Not exactly the thing you should be telling someone who is indeed battling an antibiotic resistant bacteria such as Klebsiella pneumoniae.

But, for those people, I shake the dust off from those heartless comments and the need to prove myself is not necessary. I have professionals in the medical field who are taking charge, helping me to keep living as healthy as I can, and that's what matters.

Part of the mystery as to why I've been so sick is not revealed...no thanks to the idiotic doctor who ran the tests and did nothing with the results to help me.

I keep going so that I can battle this bacteria with the help of people who are very aware, even if they do say the "F" word while showing their own frustration. Of course, having Addison's disease complicates my battle and my doctor discussed that with me today. Steroid treatment can lead to a system that is immune suppressed, it can make it harder for the body to heal and my lack of adrenaline means that this added stress of infection to my body is not good for the management of Addison's disease. It might be the reason I was so susceptible to this becoming a real infection instead of a bacteria that my body could indeed destroy and keep at bay on its own. I feel like a juggling act in constant motion, without a break.

And I discussed with my doctor the person who has been so unsupportive and who has been lashing out with things too horrendous to repeat because he can't comprehend a person being exposed to this bacteria, simply because his own misunderstanding of this bacteria didn't lead to him researching the bacteria to fully to learn that there are VARIATIONS of it. This bacteria has variations that go from being positively lethal within 2-3 days to being somewhat responsive to antibiotics, often with a 50% chance of beating it, depending on the location of the bacteria in your body and whether or not it has colonized and/or is recognized as being a KPC variant. I'm still so clueless about this bacteria, but am learning because I am personally fighting it; I've had the bacteria growing dangerously in my body, but the real fight starts, as of today.

Hopefully, I have been given the chance to battle back and Cipro will work for me. I am hopeful. Actually, I'm the eternal optimist. I won't fib, I'm still scared to be confronting one of the most feared antibiotic resistant infections discussed in this day and age, it still seems unreal and too sci-fi for me to absorb. However, it seems to fit today's world...we live in a time of facing bacteria that evolve to fiercely compete with human knowledge, so they, too, can survive.

I am grateful to my angel of information and you know who you are. If anyone out there is battling this bacteria or has known someone to die from an infection or from sepsis related to a Klebsiella or KPC infection, please email me at FindingLana@yahoo.com.

And one last thing for today, as I'm about to leave to pick up my Cipro...I am learning that bleach is still KING.

Me...in the past few weeks...on a day I was faking it until I made it.

# 352 - C. diff Danger - Protect Yourself

I am a writer, a blogger, a simple woman. What is it that has been said of blogging? That it is the graffiti of writing? Well, I've probably put out some graffiti in this attempt at what I call "Reality Writing," and my opinions are personal opinions, but my sharing is always a heartfelt effort mingled with a desire to be informative. This week, I have been reading some of Peter Eisler's writings. He is an investigative journalist with USA TODAY, and the recognition he receives for his work is for good reason.

I look forward to reading more of his work, even if it makes my skin crawl...in a good way. I often have to pause while reading his work because each sentence is a powerpunch to the brain...it has to be absorbed with a chill-wiggle before I proceed to the next sentence. You can bet that I'll be following his reports, and I suggest you do the same.

I'm passing this particular topic along because having a broad international readership provides a great spider-web opportunity to help spread information. One little thread of knowledge leads to another, around and round it goes.

Since many support boards and groups read this blog, I am hoping you can do your part to spread the word about this bacteria I have just learned about in one of Peter Eisler's articles. It's called, "C. diff" which is short for Clostridium difficile. This bacteria could be a danger to any of us, especially those of us with known chronic medical conditions. Understanding C. diff might be vital for each of us to have an added edge to avoid this bacteria and the complications it could invite into our body. I say, face the eye-popping truth revealed in the article that I am providing via an attached link. As for me, I cannot turn my back on potentially life-saving research; I must pass it along.

Since I have had my fair share of hospitalizations and have another one fast approaching in November, the information I've recently read on a hardy bacteria called "C. diff" has apparently awakened my brain to new dangers at many different kinds of medical facilities. Yet, it seems that many of these medical facilities do not want to fully address. C. diff as a sinister bacteria making an impact upon their controlled environments. It appears that many medical facilities are learning that C. diff is not so easy to shoo away with the squirt of standard anti-bacterial cleanser.

In Peter Eisler's article, he provides in-depth research to bring awareness about the seriousness of bacterial enemies, such as C. diff, and their wiliness to escape destruction. While reading Mr. Eisler's article, I could only imagine this bacteria to be the foundation for horror sci-fi movies, its ability to cling to the cracks and crannies of hospital equipment and beyond is terrifying. The way this bacteria manifests itself in the human body is no less unthinkable except that is is thinkable. C. diff exists and the realities of it being in a hospital near you is likely.

This bacteria has proven to have deadly consequences. Just as we carefully strive to be dutiful in locking our doors at night to protect ourselves and our families, it would be wise to know what is on the other side of that locked door. And who hasn't had to made an occasional trip to some kind of medical facility? Sooner or later, most of us have to make that trip, dreaded or not. Are you thinking that you are safe because of that hand-sanitizer you carry around? Think again. Do you believe all hospital-strength cleaners and hospital-strength hand-sanitizers installed every 3-5 feet will be your first-line of defense against this bacteria? Think again.

That mop that the maintenance crew is swiping down the hall might not be doing anything but tickling this bacteria.

For me, Peter Eisler had me thinking, first and foremost, about the disinfectants and cleaners used by many hospitals...once you learn about C. diff bacteria, it is quite amazing to discover many hospital disinfectants currently used are not able to kill this bacteria. Changes in cleaners is a simple administrative decision that could be the start in saving lives. However, for a change to occur, acknowledgement of a problem must first be admitted. Unfortunately, hospitals are like the rest of society after a problem is discovered...too many think that the problem won't hit their doorstep, so the foot-dragging toward change often results in disaster.

More than anything, Peter's investigative reporting demonstrates a direct link between awareness and resulting action.

I suppose there will be many hospitals who will avoid Mr. Eisler's investigative works as if it were the plague itself. Facing it might mean accountability. His article embraces hard-hitting information which would demand an end to blind-bliss that creates lethal ignorance. However, one nurse, one patient, one resident in town can do their part to pass along Mr. Eisler's article to promote change. If questions aren't asked, everyone keeps their mouth shut, cover-ups continue and denials remain in place.

Life has continual lessons, avoiding a problem or pretending it doesn't exist won't work. Only by educating ourselves, confronting the issue and following through with an evolving plan can the problem be erased or minimized.

And the C. diff problem is ALL of our problem because bacteria is not a selective enemy, especially when you look around and believe a medical facility appears sparkly clean. It's hard to imagine that deadly bacteria can still be hiding in the midst of a sterile environment, but C. diff proves that to be the case.

However, I urge my blog readers to digest this informative article while remembering that bacteria knows no boundaries, bacteria does not require a passport to travel. This bacteria is likely to impact whatever country you reside in, and it would be prudent to at least be aware so you can question your hospital about their protocol regarding this bacteria, especially if you are a health care worker.

Regardless, remember that most hospitals are run the same as large corporations with liability as their main concern, so the downplay of C. diff statistics is often conveniently shifted with pass-the-buck techniques in an attempt to keep the bacterial "source unknown" and this gives the excuse for patient stats linked to such bacteria the lack of a papertrail. Why would a hospital want to test their patients for C. diff and take accountability for their contamination when a patient may have just been transferred from another facility already infected? If the already-infected patient is counted as testing positive for such a bacteria as C. diff, then the hospital that did not originally cause the infection might be held to the fire. Of course, this blame game comes with a high price, often paid in full by unsuspecting patients who will become infected because of this contagious bacteria being swept under the rug, so to speak. Just remember, this bacteria will happily live under the rug, it can't be swept away so easily.

Blaming another source as a possible excuse for a patient being exposed to C. diff is an obvious ploy to keep distasteful record-keeping from sticking to name of a medical facility. However, this is one problem that proves that denial is not a viable option. C. diff causes deaths that are hard to explain.

Would it really matter where the original source of contamination came from if all medical facilities were required to keep their own records to reflect each and every patient that has tested positive for such bacteria infections? Perhaps strict record-keeping protocol would lead to a better understanding of which facilities have the bacteria invasion under control and which ones need to get a handle on such serious problems.

Peter has shown that some hospitals do indeed record each and every patient diagnosed with such bacterial infections, regardless of the possible original source of contamination...simply keeping record of the number of infected individuals in their facility is giving power to the movement toward controlling contamination. It is refreshing to see some hospitals at least taking ownership for patient stats regarding this bacteria and others, while still acknowledging that the original exposure to the bacteria might have come from another facility.

Read the article and let me know what you think. I know some of you prefer to email, but just know that I am often slow to open my emails. I am very confident that Peter Eisler's work will make a positive difference in the world because his writing has brought focus to a bacteria that is apparently not as insignificant as liability-protecting entities would have us believe.

Title:	Far more could be done to stop the deadly bacteria C. diff
Author:	By Peter Eisler, USA TODAY
Publication:	USA TODAY
Publisher:	USA TODAY
Date:	Aug 15, 2012

Learn more about C. diff, spread the word, click on the link below and arm yourself with the power of knowledge.

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/health/story/2012-08-16/deadly-bacteria-hospital-infections/57079514/1