The article expresses concerns over the spread of superbugs by hospital wet wipes. The wipes were believed to spread the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Acinetobacter baumannii, and Clostridium difficile. Staphylococcus aureus is a bacteria that is a gram-positive coccal. It is a member of the Firmicutes that are commonly found in respiratory tracts, on the skin, and in the nose. Acinetobacter baumannii is a bacterium that is short, almost round rod-shaped but gram-negative. It is commonly derived from hospital situations and affects humans with compromised or weak immune system. It is a member of phylum Proteobacteria.
Clostridium difficile is a bacterium also known as C.difficile that belongs to the Firmicutes phylum. It is like the Staphylococcus aureus as it is a gram-positive bacteria formed by spores. It is most prevalent in soil, and it is motile. Seen under a microscope, it is irregular and often looks like a drumstick, long and at the terminal ends it has cells with a bulge. Its optimum growth is promoted by human body temperature, the absence of oxygen, and blood agar. Its survival tactics entails producing spores that are tolerant to intense conditions that other active bacteria cannot endure when stressed.
The article on BBC news indicated that researchers at Cardiff University proposed this claim that the hospitals have a possibility and tendency of spreading these three superbugs (bacteria). It is something of a concern as the bacteria can cause lung, blood, skin, and heart infections. Seven detergent wipes commonly used in hospitals across the UK were taken in for tests (BBC News).S The tests indicated a huge variability in their ability to kill these bacteria. In each of the cases, the superbugs were spread by the wipes from one surface to another.
These wipes showed inconsistency in their ability to remove the spores from hospital surfaces and spread significant amounts on consecutive surfaces. This article obtains its knowledge from the study published in the American Journal of Infection Control about the effectiveness of testing wipes on MRSA, Acinetobacter and C. difficile that are life-threatening illness (BBC News).
Statistics indicate that these bacteria have caused life-threatening complications and diseases. In 2012, there were 1, 646 deaths in England that involved the C. difficile and 292 in Wales related to MRSA. Professionals indicate that the wipes, in general, are good products, but their efficacy needs to be improved (BBC News). The hospital staff requires more education so as to ensure wipes are used properly. It will help avoid unnecessary risks to patients and staff as a single wipe should be used only on a single surface and not multiple.
The parent article of this research that indicated the high variability in pathogen removal and transfer by detergent wipes revealed that there was no information on the ability of detergent wipes removing and transferring pathogens subsequently while in practice(Ramm et al., 2015). It was an important research, and the main concern as these detergent wipes was advocated in most hospital policies for routine cleaning. Health care practitioners only placed significance on disinfecting and cleaning practices and ignored the tools used in this practice.
In conclusion, from the research, the detergent wipes were found to have two significant drawbacks. They had variability in removing from innate surfaces microbial bio-burden and had the propensity to transfer the pathogens across surfaces. The hospitals need to consider measures that are complementary (Ramm et al., 2015). This includes combining disinfectant/detergent based products. There needs to be appropriate consideration of a measure that will prevent and control pathogens on hospital surfaces. Most people visit hospitals increasing the chances of rampant transfer of these bacteria.
Works Cited
BBC News,. "Superbugs 'Spread By Hospital Wet Wipes' - BBC News". N.p., 2015. Web. 1 Mar. 2016. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-33054489
Ramm, Lauren et al. “Pathogen Transfer and High Variability in Pathogen Removal by Detergent Wipes.” American Journal of Infection Control 2015. Web.
Raghu, G. "A Study On Consumer Awareness Of Kara Skincare Wet Wipes". SSRN Electronic Journal n. pag. Web.
