Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

Healthcare-Associated Infections Overview Most people around the world have a general understanding that hospitals are a place where people go to get better. However, it is not common knowledge amongst the world’s population that these are also places where infections can, and often do, occur (Fremgen, 2012). Previously termed nosocomial infections, and now referred to as healthcare-associated infections, these infections are contracted while individuals are being treated for other health…

When examining the leadership themes of following the established norms or being innovative, the practices within the medical field show both sides of this leadership style. When working with the human body in any type of environment, whether it is a lifesaving procedure after an automobile accident or a planned medical procedure within a medical facility, medical personnel follow established procedures. These established procedures based on evidence-based practices have proven beneficial to the…

The Hospital Value-Based Purchasing (VBP) program is an initiative by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that rewards acute-care hospitals with incentive payments for the quality of care they give to people with Medicare (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 2015). CMS rewards acute care hospitals based on the quality of care they provide, on how closely best clinical practices are followed, and on how well they enhance the patients’ experience of care. The hospital VBP…

Fleming had been culturing colonies of Staphylococcus when one of the plates, untreated by Lysol, had been contaminated by Penicillium notatum. Fleming observed that the growth of staphylococci had been inhibited in the area immediately surrounding the mold, suggesting that the mold secreted an antibacterial…

On October 31, 2017, at 4:00 pm, I attended the Department of Biology Seminar Series hosted by Dr. Richard Gomer that helped in the Biological Sciences Building East, Room 115. The lecturer was Dr. Carolyn Cannon from the Department of Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology at the College of Medicine TAMHSC. What intrigued me to go to this lecture was the title, “Wolves in Sheep's Clothing: Killing Bacterial Pathogens with Innocuous Compounds. Surprisingly the title did match the content that Dr.…

handle to each patient’s room and the convenience of a sink at the entrance of each patient’s room. Noncompliance of hand hygiene by the healthcare workers can lead to the spread of deadly hospital acquired infections such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus from staff, to patients, and visitors to the healthcare facility. The reasons for noncompliance of hand hygiene by healthcare workers include: high patient to nurses ratio, inadequate training, and lack of motivation. Nurses…

Ancient DNA • Summary: Ancient DNA is DNA that has been extracted extinct specimens. It can be used to study evolution and genomic consequences of long term environmental change. We can make species un-extinct by using the ancient DNA and then use this DNA to fertilize an embryo. However, the technology to do this is not available yet as no species have had their full genome sequenced. In addition, it is hard to find a surrogate to create an individual from this DNA. Ancient DNA is used today…

antibiotic over prescription and unnecessary prescription. This problem represents a tragedy of the commons and negative externality, as each course of antibiotics reduces the overall effectiveness of the drugs and contributes to the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. This paper attempts to estimate the negative externality associated with antibiotic prescriptions, especially when they are needlessly prescribed. Further, this paper attempts to estimate the impact of moral hazard associated…

that there was a decrease in surgical site infections, which the statistics were taken from 10 procedures that were analyzed throughout previous reports. The report states that there was a “13 percent decrease in hospital-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia (bloodstream infections) between 2011 and 2014” (“Healthcare-associated Infections,” 2016). We can assume that these decreases are due to better anti-septic techniques, both by nurses and surgeons. Although…

that, “she had back surgery and contracted a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection that required daily intravenous antibiotics”. This could have been the result of bacteria being resistant to the penicillin. In the article, “The Landscape of Antibiotic Resistance”, it is mentioned that, “The problem of antibiotic resistance has become widely known in large part because of the emergence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)... most MRSA infections were…