by Mike Gatti | Sep 1, 2019 | Blog
Infection preventionists (IPs) should be a key member of these water management teams, but almost half the facilities consulted by Legionella experts did not have an IP on the committee, said Laura Morris, MT (ASCP), CIC, education coordinator at the Special Pathogens...
by Mike Gatti | Aug 22, 2019 | Blog
The Healthcare Infection Transmission Systems (HITS) Catalyst for Change conference was recently held in Buffalo, New York. The 3-day consortium focused on several topics, with 1 day especially focused on the health care burden and control efforts for Legionella. The...
by Mike Gatti | Aug 22, 2019 | Events
Ending Legionnaires’ Disease: An Audacious or Achievable Goal? Date: Tuesday, August 27th Time: 2:00 PM Eastern (11 AM Pacific) Speaker: Janet E. Stout, PhD, President and Director, Special Pathogens Laboratory, USA Chaired by: Michael Castro, MPH, Western...
by Mike Gatti | Aug 20, 2019 | Blog
The day after the Sheraton Atlanta was cleared to reopen, CBS46 checked into the hotel. …The Georgia Department of Public Health said legionella bacteria was found in the hotel’s cooling tower and in a fountain near the pool. We called Dr. Janet Stout, an...
by Mike Gatti | Jun 19, 2019 | Blog
Pittsburgh Magazine’s Women and Business Recognizes Dr. Janet E. Stout, President and Director, Special Pathogens Laboratory During her time in college at Clarion University, Janet Stout was originally interested in microbiology. When it was time for her to...
by Mike Gatti | Apr 29, 2019 | Events
Special Pathogens Laboratory to Host Conference Designed to Promote Shared Knowledge and Foster Communication Among Water Management Teams Pittsburgh, Pa. (April 29 2019) —Special Pathogens Laboratory will host Puzzled by Legionella and Waterborne Pathogens? A...
by Mike Gatti | Oct 19, 2018 | Blog
Infection preventionists are the leaders of the overall efforts to prevent healthcare-association infections within a healthcare facility. As the leader, the infection preventionist has many roles including educator, collaborator, liaison, consultant, evaluator and...
by Mike Gatti | Oct 17, 2018 | Blog
Reports of Legionnaires’ disease follow heavy rains. According to Janet Stout, director of the Special Pathogens Laboratory in Pittsburgh, legionella bacteria is largely resistant to the chlorine that’s used in public water systems to treat water before it...
by Mike Gatti | Oct 17, 2018 | Blog
International Infection Prevention week is a week to highlight the role of infection prevention plays in patient safety. Infection prevention is everyone’s responsibility. Did you know there are things each one of us can do to prevent the spread of infection in...
by Mike Gatti | Oct 13, 2018 | Blog
IP NOTES October 14-20, 2018 is International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW). Established in 1986 by President Ronald Reagan, IIPW is a week to highlight the role infection prevention plays in patient safety. This year’s theme is Protecting Patients Everywhere. Did...
by Mike Gatti | Apr 27, 2018 | Blog
Almost a year has passed since the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a compliance memorandum telling healthcare systems to perform risk assessments and implement water safety programs to prevent patients from acquiring Legionnaires’ disease...
by Mike Gatti | Sep 30, 2017 | Blog
by Dehlia Ricks September 30, 2007 The bacterial infection got its name 31 years ago, when dozens of attendees at an American Legion’s convention in Philadelphia came down with an inexplicable illness that caught experts off guard. To this day,...
