Report: “Answers Sought in Hepatitis Infection”
This newspaper article discusses a recent outbreak of the hepatitis C virus due to the alleged theft of intravenous (IV) drugs.
The following is an excerpt from this article, which was written by the Associated Press and published in the Republican American newspaper:
CONCORD, N.H. (August 19, 2013)— Patients at a New Hampshire hospital who were infected with hepatitis C by a traveling medical technician with a drug problem are pleased with his guilty plea but are still pushing to hold others accountable.
External audits of Exeter Hospital’s infection-control practices may have reduced the likelihood of this incident. Click here to read about a program developed by Dr. Muscarella that would certainly ensure the safety of this hospital’s endoscope-reprocessing practices.
David Kwiatkowski, 34, pleaded guilty last week to 16 federal drug charges under an agreement that calls for him to spend 30 to 40 years in prison. He admitted stealing painkiller syringes from hospitals where he worked and replacing them with saline-filled syringes tainted with his blood.
Before he was hired at Exeter Hospital in New Hampshire in 2011, Kwiatkowski worked as a cardiac technologist in 18 hospitals in seven states, moving from job to job despite being fired at least four times over allegations of drug use and theft.
Consumers can help educate themselves about infection control and the prevention of such healthcare-associated infections as those confirmed at this hospital in New Hampshire. Click here for more details.
“Everyone’s been pointing at Kwiatkowski, and to some extent they should, but what Exeter Hospital is trying to do is hide behind Kwiatkowski and point the finger at him,” said attorney Mark Abramson, who represents 12 patients suing the hospital and others. “That does not absolve them of their responsibility, because no matter how bad of a jerk Kwiatkowski is, the truth of the matter is, it never should’ve gotten to this point.”
[This article is continued. Click here to read this article in its entirety.]