[humanser] Question about cane sanitation for hospital use
Michael Abell
bigdog4744 at gmail.com
Mon Aug 17 18:52:52 UTC 2015
Ginny,
Thank you so much for your contribution. I feel that I will be more
aware and informed should I encounter this situation.
I am thinking that I should be first concerned about my personal
health. If I remain vigilant, my chances of "carrying" illness to others
decreases. I can certainly understand how I could easily develop a phobia
about germs!
I am going to sanitize Elvis and Johnny Cash (the names I have given
my main canes) as well as my devices as soon as I put this computer down!
Regards,
Michael "Big Dog" Abell
Helping individuals to find their eyes in the dark.
(480) 369-0805
-----Original Message-----
From: humanser [mailto:humanser-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Ginny Duff
via humanser
Sent: Monday, August 17, 2015 11:44 AM
To: humanser at nfbnet.org
Cc: Ginny Duff
Subject: Re: [humanser] Question about cane sanitation for hospital use
In most of the situations described in previous e-mails, it sound like these
are patients who on admission were found to be positive for an antibiotic
resistant bacteria which may not even make them sick. The hospitals are
trying to keep the bacteria from spreading from patient to patient because
some people in hospital who are ill or medically comprimised may end up in
trouble if infected by these particular bacteria. My husband was in
hospital and was found to be MRSA positive. Everyone had to gown, etc when
we interred the room. The second he was discharged however, we all took
our gowns off and walked out of the hospital taking his MRSA bacteria with
him into the outer world. Its kind of crazy. I have found the policies
and procedures a bit baffling, but there are reasons behind them. Having
said that, the compliance rates amongst staff are not always 100%.
Working in a hospital, we are supposed to use the alcohol cleanser
throughout the day to minimize spread of whatever is on doorknobs, elevator
buttons , handrailings ,etc. I slather the alcohol on my hands and on the
handle of my cane every time.
There are other situations where someone has something more virulent and
then there would be higher levels of infection control. The room might have
negative pressure, etc to keep airborn pathogens in the room. I don't know
the rules about cleaning down equipment in those rooms but am sure it would
be more rigorous.
The highest level of control would be in an operating room, where everything
would have to be sterilized. That is an entirely different ball game.
Your unsterilized white cane would be problematic there.
Ginny
Dr. V. Duff
Clinical Director, West End ACT Team,
St. Joseph's Heatlh Centre , Toronto
Staff Psychiatrist, Complex Mental Illness, CAMH Lecturer, University of
Toronto
Tel: 416.530.6000, ext 3101
FAX: 416.530.6363
Sent from my iPad
> On Aug 17, 2015, at 2:24 PM, Annely Rose via humanser
<humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Hi,
>
> I'm following this thread and it is very thought provoking. I am
> recalling that when my late husband was in the hospital with a staff
infection in his nasal passages, as they called it, all of us had to wear
protective gear, but the nurse brought in the medication cart and I'm not
aware that anyone wiped it down afterward. also, there was furniture in the
room and other equipment. I carried my cane in and no one said anything.
Even a doctor came in and didn't have a gown on or any facial mask. go
figure. Maybe this hospital wasn't as strict or should I say they were
careless. And where did my husband get this infection? He was home with us
2 days before and a day in ICU before they diagnosed it and none of the
family came down with it. The ICU staff didn't wear anything protective.
Makes you wonder. And if you get sick, they say that there are staff germs
everywhere, even on our skin. Our canes go everywhere with us and who knows
what the tips come in contact with on a daily basis. I try to wipe mine
clean, but many times forget. When I fold it up, I never put it in my purse
and try not to touch it either on my skin or on my clothes. And, of course,
I never put it on a table anywhere. If I set it on a chair in a restaurant,
I'll leave the tip hanging over the edge.
>
> Annely
>
>
> --------------------------------------------
> On Mon, 8/17/15, Michael Abell via humanser <humanser at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>
> Subject:
> =?utf-8?B?UmU6IFtodW1hbnNlcl0gUXVlc3Rpb24gYWJvdXQgY2FuZSBzYW5pdGF0aW9u
> IGZvciBob3NwaXRhbCB1c2U===?> To: "'Human Services Division Mailing
> List'" <humanser at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: "Michael Abell" <bigdog4744 at gmail.com>
> Date: Monday, August 17, 2015, 12:18 PM
>
> Hello,
> These are all fantastic and thought provoking answers! I am taken
> by the new frontiers that we are blazing through.
> I have special canes for occasions. What about a cane that would
> be used for just such purposes. You could remove any porous material
> (grips, tips . and elastic) even going to a solid cane. This would
> make it easy to sanitize and you could limit its use for these
> purposes.
> J D brings up very salient
> points about instruments and devices. I would ask the hospital staff
> what they do with their devices. I am also waiting to hear what our
> dear friend Dr. Chapel has to say on this subject!
> Mary?
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Michael "Big Dog" Abell
>
> Helping individuals to find
> their eyes in the dark.
> (480) 369-0805
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: humanser [mailto:humanser-bounces at nfbnet.org]
> On Behalf Of Ginny Duff
> via humanser
> Sent: Monday, August 17, 2015 9:06 AM
> To: humanser at nfbnet.org
> Cc: Ginny Duff
> Subject: Re:
> [humanser] Question about cane sanitation for hospital use
>
> I work in a hospital
> although being in psychiatry, I rarely have to worry
> about this issue. I agree that the
> cane is essential. Its one thing to
> leave it outside the room when you are just visiting but it would be a
> completely different matter if you were working there.
>
> I'd be just as concerned
> about the tip and the handle. If you touch
> something with your gloves then you have transferred anything
> contaminated to the handle and then once you take the gloves off your
> hands are in direct contact with the
> handle. Of course when you fold the cane up you
> then
> touch the whole thing.
>
> You could contact the head of
> infection control and let them mull that over.
>
>
> What to do
> with the cane would be analogous to what staff do with a walker or
> medical equipment that is taken
> out of the room later. They must wipe
> that equipment down with something that would
> work on your cane. Alcohol
> swabs are a
> bit too small.
>
> Ginny
>
>
>
> Dr. V. Duff
> Clinical Director,
> West End ACT Team,
> St. Joseph's Heatlh
> Centre , Toronto
> Staff Psychiatrist, Complex
> Mental Illness, CAMH Lecturer, University of Toronto
> Tel: 416.530.6000, ext 3101
> FAX: 416.530.6363
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
>> On Aug 17, 2015, at 11:43
> AM, JD Townsend via humanser
> <humanser at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
>>
>>
>> Hello Kaiti & All:
>>
>> Interesting
> question. I do work in a hospital and precautions are
>> always an issue.
>>
>> My questions are:
>> Do
> other staff wear street shoes or cover them with booties?
>> Do other staff wear full body coverings or
> are pants exposed?
>>
>> Alcohol wipes are always present in
> hospitals. A clean wipe of my
>> white
> cane would provide much better protection than the exposure to
>> my shoes or pants and much better
> protection than nursing clipboards or
> exposed hair.
>>
>> According to my best knowledge, your white
> cane is considered a
>> prosthesis, like
> a prostetic leg and as such there ought be no problem
>> if it is kept as clean as one of those
> devices.
>>
>> If shoe
> booties are called for, just use one for your cane tip.
>>
>> I would be more
> concerned about your music insterments - players and
>> the like, and your cell 'phone.
>>
>>
>> JD Townsend LCSW
> Helping the light dependent to see.
> Daytona Beach, Earth, Sol System
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