A recent spate of cases concerning patients throughout the EU presenting with Legionnaires’ disease has led to a link between these cases and recent travel to Dubai, UAE. While the number of cases presenting is still very small, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has highlighted the link in a recent epidemiological update issued on their website.
A 63-year-old man who died from Legionnaires’ disease in February this year appears to have contracted it via his garden hosepipe. Stephen Clements began developing flu-like symptoms shortly after using the hosepipe in his garden. He had used the hosepipe earlier in the year, and hadn’t emptied the hose once he had finished using it. It appears the hose sat in the sun for a time, with water st
A guest who stayed at The Feathers Hotel in Ludlow, Shropshire in July has been confirmed to have died from Legionnaires’ disease, according to recent news reports. She is thought to have been in her sixties, and a resident of Merseyside, and passed away in the middle of August. This follows another case of Legionnaires’ disease suffered by another guest of the same hotel earlier in the year.
Many people have questions concerning cooling towers and whether they need to tell their local council about them. Here, we look at how to register a cooling tower and council notification; we also provide answers to some of the more common questions from owners and operators of towers and evaporative condensers that arise.
This article considers issues around Care Quality Commission compliance for GP practices and in particular the requirement to conduct a legionella risk assessment to control Legionnaires’ disease in healthcare premises.
There is nothing quite like a steaming-hot shower to perk you up in the morning or to leave you feeling refreshed last thing at night. But if you thought your shower was a clean and safe haven of tranquillity, think again. Chances are, it could be a breeding ground for deadly bacteria and you may not even realise it.
We’ve created this useful Infographic titled “What is Legionnaires’ disease” to help people quickly understand more about the disease, what it is, where it comes from, who’s most at risk, typical symptoms, how it’s treated, sources of risk in the workplace and the legionella risk assessment process.
UK health officials have confirmed over 200 hospital patients throughout England have been infected with a Japanese fungus that has proven to be resistant to drugs. The fungus is known as Candida auris and was first identified in Japan. The fungus is referred to as a Japanese fungus because the first case was found in 2009 in a patient in Japan.
The UK’s Department of Health document HTM 04-01 – safe water in healthcare premises (part B), sets of the need for the formation of a team of experts referred to as the Water Safety Group or WSG. In the NHS and other healthcare environments the Water Safety Group describes a team of specialists that collectively has the responsibility for creating, implementing, and maintaining a Water Safety
The Department of Health’s HTM 00 may be unknown to some of those working in the healthcare sector, and yet it is an important element to be aware of as it deals with issues associated with building engineering in hospitals and other healthcare premises.