Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/949902
83 FINANCE CMO / CARE DELIVERY Alleged 'Patient Dumping' of Homeless Man at California Hospital Stirs Debate By Alyssa Rege A video depicting a homeless man in a wheelchair who was reportedly discharged from Santa Cruz, Ca- lif.-based Dignity Health-Dominican Hospi- tal late at night Jan. 11 and le at a bus stop wearing nothing but a hospital gown has sparked a debate about the quality of care provided to the area's homeless population, the Santa Cruz Sentinel reported. Police told the publication Jan. 12 authorities were called to the bus stop outside the hospi- tal shortly aer midnight Jan. 11 aer a city bus driver said the homeless man's wheel- chair would not fit on the bus, according to the report. Police reportedly got in touch with Brent Adams, program director for the Santa Cruz Warming Center Program, a communi- ty-funded organization that provides supplies to the homeless population in the Santa Cruz area, to seek out space at the emergency shel- ter for the homeless man. Upon arrival at the bus stop, Mr. Adams post- ed a video to his organization's Facebook page Jan. 11 documenting the homeless man's sit- uation. "A hospital smock for a person who's an XXL large is virtual nudity," Mr. Adams told the Santa Cruz Sentinel Jan. 12. "Nobody that I know of would have le him in that condi- tion. ey'd say, let's wrap him up. No matter what he did, they still le him naked at the bus stop at 11 p.m." A spokesperson from Dignity Health-Do- minican Hospital declined to discuss the particulars of the homeless man's case with the Santa Cruz Sentinel Jan. 12, citing patient privacy laws and hospital policy. When asked generally about the discharge of a homeless patient, the spokesperson told the publica- tion, "every situation is different. Emergency room patients are offered food, clothing and access to transportation and housing resourc- es, if needed." "Dominican Hospital works with several or- ganizations in the community to provide re- sources for those in need," the spokesperson continued. e incident represents the second high- ly-publicized instance of "patient dumping" that has taken place nationwide. Earlier in January, Baltimore-based University of Mary- land Medical Center Midtown Campus ver- ified footage and issued an apology about a viral video posted online depicting hospital security guards leaving a woman at a bus stop wearing only a hospital gown and socks. n Beware the 'Cesspool of Funky Flu': ER Nurse's Rant on Flu Prevention Goes Viral By Mackenzie Bean A Florida nurse posted a video to her Facebook Jan. 27, highlighting the importance of flu prevention amid such a severe season, re- ported USA Today. Katherine Lockler, RN, works at several emergency rooms in northwest Florida and filmed the video after a 12-hour night shift. In the video, Ms. Lockler highlights the severity of this year's flu season and encourages people to take special precautions when visiting a hospital, including washing their "stinking hands." She also urges people to avoid "the cesspool of funky flu at the ER," unless absolutely necessary. "Please don't bring your healthy children — especial- ly your newborn babies — into the emergency room," Ms. Lockler said in the video. "And if you don't have what I call a true emergency, this would not be a time to come to the emergency room." The video went viral, garnering 5.3 million views, 101,000 shares and 25,000 likes on Facebook as of Feb. 2. n Hospital Toilet Flushing During Patient Care Can Lead to Spread of Pathogens By Anuja Vaidya A study published in Antimicrobial Resistance & Infec- tion Control quantified the particles and bioaerosols produced from flushing a hospital toilet during routine patient care. Researchers measured particle and bioaerosol concentrations in hospital bathrooms across three sampling conditions — no waste no flush, no waste with flush and fecal waste with flush. They mea- sured the concentrations with a particle counter bioaerosol sam- pler both before and after a toilet flushing event at distances of 0.15, 0.5 and 1 meter from the toilet. The study shows particle concentrations measured before and after the flush were significantly different. In particular, bioaero- sol concentrations when flushing fecal waste were found to be significantly greater than background concentrations. The parti- cles aerosolized include microorganisms remaining from previ- ous use or from fecal wastes. The study suggests aerosols generated may remain for longer than 30 minutes post toilet flush. It also suggests toilet flushing is a source of bioaerosols that may result in transmission of patho- genic microorganisms. n