Introduction
One of the most critical tasks of healthcare administrators is to prevent the effects of disease outbreaks and lessen the outcomes of infectious illness exposure to human health. Adopting relevant and adequate procedures can allow hospitals to resist outbreaks and reduce the number of potential cases, so several components should be included in these policies. In this paper, the role of a healthcare administrator for a 100-bed facility will be taken to report the measures required to respond to a recent outbreak of drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa.
Managing Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Outbreak
History of Outbreak
Artificial tears are eyedrops that people use in everyday lives to lubricate their eyes and remove dryness, redness, and other symptoms, and these drops are also utilized in inpatient care. However, a recent outbreak of Pseudomonas aeruginosa strain associated with certain brands of artificial tears makes hospitals reconsider their usage of eye drops and urgently respond to this threat (Howard, 2023).
According to ASM Communications (2023), the CDC has identified that the earliest cases come from spring 2022, but where exactly the outbreak began is not clarified. One of the first cases was detected in November 2022 in Cleveland, Ohio (ASM Communications, 2023). Currently, the situation is quite critical: the CDC (2023) highlights, as of May 2023, “81 patients in 18 states (CA, CO, CT, DE, FL, IL, NC, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, PA, SD, TX, UT, WA, WI)” have been diagnosed with the condition (para. 2). The fact that this specific bacterium appears to be drug-resistant is surprising to medical professionals, making it even more challenging to address the outbreak.
Symptom Identification
Listing key symptoms to ensure that proposed interventions are adequate is crucial. According to the CDC (2023), this bacterium strain causes multiple infections, and the eye is the most common. Thus, the signs are evident, such as green or yellow discharge from the eyes, eye discomfort or pain, eyelid redness, increased light sensitivity, foreign body sensation, and blurry vision (CDC, 2023). Prevention options are essential because the situation is critical. Therefore, patients should stop using eye drops if they notice any listed symptoms and immediately seek medical help. Further, EzriCare’s and Delsam Pharma’s artificial tears cannot reduce the outbreak.
Healthcare Policy Addressing Outbreak
As a healthcare administrator, some policy elements can allow a reduction of the effects of the threat at my facility. Firstly, all eye drops and ointments manufactured by the above firms must be discarded, and only the approved brands can be used. Secondly, an essential component of the policy will be mandatory patient education and awareness-raising about the risk of infection through these eye drops (Habboush et al., 2023; Porche, 2021). This element will also include informing patients about the infection’s symptoms and reminding them to report strange sensations, especially in the eyes.
Consequences of Non-Intervention
Unfortunately, clinical non-surveillance in some facilities has resulted in adverse outcomes. The CDC has reported “14 patients with vision loss, an additional four patients with enucleation (surgical removal of eyeball), and four deaths within 30 days of VIM-GES-CRPA clinical culture collection” (para. 2). Therefore, nurses will be required to examine patients’ eyes daily, evaluating them for redness and other visual signs. Communicating the policy to the staff is essential to ensure they adhere to it (Porche, 2021). Overall, outbreaks can affect my facility negatively, worsening client outcomes, increasing costs, and threatening my employees’ and consumers’ health and well-being.
Conclusion
To conclude, responding to an outbreak might be challenging, but healthcare administrators have to assess all risks and focus on securing the health of medical workers and patients. The authorities have yet to address the recent exposure to drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa, considering the situation is critical. To lessen its effects on my facility, I will include patient education, frequent assessments of their eyes, EzriCare and Delsam Pharma eye drops’ discarding, and better clinical surveillance as some policy elements.
References
ASM Communications. (2023). A dangerous eye infection from tainted eye drops, months before the CDC’s warning. American Society for Microbiology. Web.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC]. (2023). Outbreak of extensively drug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa associated with artificial tears. Web.
Habboush, Y., Yarrarapu, S. N. S., & Guzman, N. (2023). Infection control. StatPearls Publishing.
Howard, L. (2023). FDA warns people not to use 2 types of eye drops due to contamination. UC Davis Health. Web.
Porche, D. J. (2023). Health policy: Application for nurses and other healthcare professionals. (3rd ed.) Jones & Bartlett Learning.