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Oct 6, 2009 6:03 pm US/Eastern
Nurse Resigns, Patients Urged To Get HIV Tests
FORT LAUDERDALE (CBS4) ―
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A nurse is accused of not changing IV bags like this one during chemical stress tests.
CBS
The Broward General Medical Center is urging patients to get tested for Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B and the HIV virus after it was revealed that a nurse re-used supplies when administering IV fluids during stress tests.
The nurse, identified as Qui Lan, was suspended pending the outcome of a full investigation. Lan, who is out of the country, has resigned and been reported to the Florida Board of Nursing. Ft. Lauderdale police have said no charges will be filed against Lan until a person comes forward and can prove they were harmed by Lan's actions.
"This is an unacceptable action that once discovered was immediately corrected," CEO James Thaw said in a letter. "We at Broward General Medical Center understand that this is alarming but want to assure our patients, employees, physician and the community that we are actively engaged in every way possible to research and alleviate this situation."
More than 1,800 patients treated by the nurse may have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis when the nurse reused saline bags and tubing during cardiac stress tests involving the injection of fluids.
Patient Victoria Bornas got one of those chemical stress tests in June. "When you hear something like this, it's frightening!" said Bornas. She found out about the possible problem by watching CBS4 News.
"I was horrified actually," said Bornas. "I was like, 'Oh No!' you can get Hepatits c, HIV and whatever other things they mention, I was really horrified by that.
The medical center sent certified letters to patients who received stress tests and encouraged them to schedule a screening at LabCorp and other independent network of clinical laboratories for blood testing.
Cardiac chemical stress tests are performed by patients who are unable to walk on a treadmill. Medical center officials said Lan performed the stress tests on 1,851 patients during her employment at BGMC from January 2004 to September 2009.
The misuse of the material came to light after an anonymous call came in to the Medical Center's Compliance Hot Line on September 1st. Thaw said Lan was investigated and suspended 8 days later. A caller reported seeing Lan use the same saline bag and a portion of tubing more than once.
"This was the act of one individual who violently -- and I use that term knowing what I'm saying -- violated basic infection control principles," Thaw told CBS 4 News.
Medical Center officials explain that Lan did discard the catheter, needle and extension tubing after each patient but did not discard the saline bag or 8-foot tubing.
Dr. David Droller, an infectious disease doctor at BGMC, said it's possible that blood from one patient could backup into the tubing and, since the tubing might have been reused on multiple patients, could have been transferred.
"Because there is that potential that's why we have elected to pursue this aggressively, proactively, to identify those people potentially at risk but we do think the risk is extraordinarily low," Droller said.
Dr. Jag Reddy, an infection disease specialist, says the chances of getting infected blood are slim. He explains blood from one patient would have to flow upstream, remain in the tubing and the flow into another patient. "There's pressure exerted by the saline and the water in the tubing that prevents the patient's blood from going through the tubing."
The Medical Center said they are undertaking a rigorous internal review to determine what happened, how long it occurred and whether any changes need to be made to procedures. According to Medical Center officials, the cardiac chemical stress tests are done by one nurse who is alone in a room with a patient. Generally, the patient does not see what the nurse does with the materials after the testing is completed.
"We do not want the act of one individual to so diminish what we do on a daily basis and hope the community understands and continues to put their trust in us," Thaw said.
Patients should also be tested in six months if they received a chemical stress test after March 1, 2009.
For additional information or questions, concerned patients should contact the dedicated 24-hour hotline at
800-545-5716 or
click here.
CBS4's Solange Reyner and Carey Codd contributed to this report.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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