Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Nasal Colonization Prevalence among Emergency Medical Services Personnel

Abstract

There is evidence that EMS personnel have a higher prevalence of MRSA colonization than the general population. This can be a risk to patients and can be recognized as an occupational hazard.

A Preliminary Assessment of Contamination of Emergency Service Helicopters with MRSA and Multi-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

“…the potential for the existence of MRSA in emergency service helicopters is very real. This is particularly likely given that the prevalence of MRSA among emergency services personnel is reported to be over four times that of the general population [14].…”

“…Recent research has demonstrated a high prevalence of MRSA among emergency services personnel (6.4%) compared to 1.5% in the general population [14]. Furthermore, previous studies have found MRSA in ambulances in both metropolitan (47.6%) [15] and rural areas (49%) [16].…”

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: An occupational health hazard in the prehospital setting

“…Surveillance systems for infectious diseases, in the realm of disaster preparedness, will help to monitor new biological incidents as soon as they occur, and will help protecting EMS personnel as first line responders to such events [12] . Al Amiry suggested that CA-MRSA can be viewed as an occupational hazard at a prehospital setting level and to further protect EMS personnel with proper guidelines that deal effectively with MRSA community outbreaks, as well as other outbreaks that may threaten humanity at large [12] .…”

“…Al Amiry suggested that CA-MRSA can be viewed as an occupational hazard at a prehospital setting level and to further protect EMS personnel with proper guidelines that deal effectively with MRSA community outbreaks, as well as other outbreaks that may threaten humanity at large [12] .…”

“…At prehospital setting, the role of EMS personnel in the cross-transmission of CA-MRSA is well known, with findings suggesting poor 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 adherence to infection control guidelines [2,9,10] . This is evident in the significantly higher prevalence of MRSA colonization among EMS personnel when compared to its prevalence in general population [12,13] . The unique position of EMS personnel makes them a critical link between hospitals and community, thus fostering the cross-transmission of nosocomial infections back and forth of this continuum, as suggested by the following model ( Figure 1): According to the suggested cross-transmission continuum in Figure 1, there is a frequent, two-way contact between a prehospital healthcare provider and the community at large.…”