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One patient died of legionellosis in a newly opened hospital, authorities said.
The patient, who died Sunday, was one of seven people diagnosed with illness after being hospitalized in Mount Carmel Grove City, the Mount Carmel health system said. However, it is too early to determine the final cause of death, said Dr. Richard Streck, clinical operations manager for the system.
The hospital is working with state and county health authorities to identify the source of the bacteria, Streck said. He conducts tests, applies water restrictions and performs additional disinfection of the water supply, he said.
Patients who develop cough, muscle aches, headache, fever or shortness of breath after hospitalization should contact their doctor, Streck said.
The first patient from Mount Carmel Grove City, where a severe legion was diagnosed, was admitted to the 200-bed hospital on April 29, the day after it opened, the health department of the hospital said Friday. Ohio in a statement. The department ordered the hospital to test and clean its ice machines, clean and maintain its on-site cooling towers and provide all test results and a management plan for the facility. 39, water to the Department of Health.
People are infected with legionnaires by inhaling droplets of water into the air containing Legionella bacteria, according to US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cooling towers containing water and a fan as part of a centralized cooling system are a potential source of legionellosis, says the CDC.
Although most healthy people are not affected, people over the age of 50, smokers, and people with weakened immune systems and chronic lung disease are most at risk. to be infected, explains the CDC.
The Mount Carmel system was the subject of close examination after discovering that a doctor had prescribed excessive doses of painkillers to 29 patients who died in his other hospitals.
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