Tag Archives: Bacteria

by | August 15, 2014 · 9:37 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Millbrook Hotel Faces Legionnaires Lawsuit”

“…The Wheat and Renta families, in the area for a local softball tournament, were among at least 14 people who became sick with flu-like symptoms including difficulty breathing, elevated temperature,Legionella-pneumophila body aches, dizziness, headaches, and chills, according to the suit…Legionnaires disease is typically contracted by inhaling or ingesting Legionella bacteria. The bacteria can also cause related illness, such as Pontiac fever, pneumonia, and other serious and sometimes permanent health conditions…”

Montgomery law firm Beasley-Allen has filed a personal injury lawsuit on behalf of two Jefferson County families, who the suit contends contracted Legionnaires disease while staying at the Sleep Inn & Suites in Millbrook.

Clayton Wheat and Tony Renta, along with several members of a girls’ softball team, became ill and several tested positive for Legionnaires disease after a weekend stay at the Sleep Inn & Suites, according to the suit filed by the Beasley Allen Law Firm in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.

For more: http://on.mgmadv.com/1mR4GRC

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by | July 1, 2013 · 9:09 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Hotel Rooms Continue To Have “High Levels Of Bacteria” From Diversity Of Guests; “Infection Risk” As Sanitizing Equipment Goes “Room To Room”

“…a hotel is  not an operating room, and bugs may lurk, despite tip-top cleaning efforts.” The  amount of guests who check in at hotels Hotel Health And Bacteria Risksfrom different parts of the world may  increase the exposure of germs…Cleaning items used by housekeepers such  as sponges and mops were also found to have high levels of bacteria which  increases the risk of infection as they go from room to room using the same  sanitizing equipment…”

On average, hotel housekeepers spend 30 minutes cleaning each room — about 14  to 16 rooms in an eight hour shift. In a study conducted at the University of Houston,  researchers took 19 bacteria samples from items found in three hotel rooms in  three states: Texas, Indiana and South Carolina. While high levels of bacteria  were discovered in bathroom sinks and floors, the dirtiest areas were light  switches and TV remotes, which contained 112.7 colony-forming unites of bacteria (CFUs)  and 67.6 CFUs, respectively. Moreover, light switches had the highest levels of  fecal matter bacteria with 111.1 CFUs.

“Guests  should not assume that their hotel room, not to mention all common surfaces  around the hotel such as doorknobs, front-desk pens … while (hopefully) clean,  are not sterile,” Matilde Parente, MD, a California-based  physician, biomedical safety consultant, and author board certified in pathology  and integrative holistic medicine, told Medical Daily.

Read more at http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/16908/20130626/hotel-health-risks-chronic-illnesses-long-stay.htm#Iobk2OkS3QmG1emv.99

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by | August 28, 2012 · 6:17 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Health Department Confirms Deaths Of Two Chicago Hotel Guests After Exposure To Bacteria Causing Legionnaires' Disease

“…Health officials said Monday that two people have died of Legionnaires’ disease after being exposed to the bacteria that causes it at the JW Marriott Hotel…”

Last week, the hotel issued a warning to all recent guests, and began the complicated process of notifying the 8,500 guests who stayed there from July 16 through Aug. 15 that they may have been exposed to the bacteria known to cause serious and sometimes fatal bacterial infections, ABC Chicago reports.

The bacteria, Legionella, spreads through the inhalation of contaminated water vapor, and can cause Legionnaire’s disease, a severe form of pneumonia, Fox Chicago reports. Symptoms include headache, chills, chest pain and fever.

The disease often mirrors regular pneumonia, and can only be confirmed by a urine test, infectious disease expert Dr. John Segreti told CBS Chicago. Dr. Kathy Ritger with the Department of Public Health told WBEZ that not all exposures lead to illness, but any recent guests experiencing respiratory problems should seek medical attention.

For more:  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/27/legionnaires-outbreak-kil_n_1834616.html

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by | October 6, 2011 · 5:31 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Health Risks: Maryland Health Officials Find "Legionella Bacteria" In Hotel Water Samples After Guests Hospitalized With Legionnaire's Disease

“…Preliminary results from hotel water samples indicate the presence of the Legionella bacteria, but final results won’t be available until the end of next week, according to DHMH…”

People with a history of smoking, those over the age of 50 and those with lung disease or weakened immune systems are at greater risk of contracting the disease, also known as legionellosis.

Guests at an Ocean City hotel have been voluntarily relocated after three people who stayed there were hospitalized with Legionnaire’s disease, according to the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

The three people developed the form of pneumonia about a week after their stay at the Plim Plaza Hotel, although investigators are still working to determine whether they contracted it there, according to the health department.

The 181-room hotel closed three days before the end of the season in order to test the water system and address any issues, said Betsy FauntLeRoy, director of marketing for the Harrison Group, which owns the Plim Plaza and nine other hotels.

For more:  http://www.baltimoresun.com/health/bs-hs-legionella-20111005,0,5437026.story

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by | July 17, 2011 · 8:10 am

Hospitality Industry Health Risks: Nevada Hotel Guests Exposed To "Bacteria Causing Legionnaires' Disease"; Water Treatment Capabilities Increased

“…Spokeswoman Stephanie Bethel of the Southern Nevada Health District said Thursday that six cases of the sometimes-deadly form of pneumonia have been reported among Aria guests by the Centers for Disease Control….”

The hotel says in a letter to guests that it added additional water treatment and the latest tests show no detectible levels of the bacteria.

The Aria Resort & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip is warning guests who stayed during a two week window that they may have been exposed to high levels of the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease.

Bethel says all six people were treated and have recovered. Hotel officials say water tests in several guest rooms between June 21 and July 4 detected elevated levels of the bacteria Legionella.

For more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/9748294

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by | June 16, 2010 · 11:07 am

Hotel Pool And Spa Health And Safety: Operator Of An Iowa Hotel Failed To Have “Certified Pool Operator” And Guest Claims To Have Contracted Legionella Disease During Stay

“… the Iowa Department of Public Health found Legionella disease in a hospitalized patient who claimed to have contracted the bacterial disease, which can cause pneumonia, during Memorial Day weekend at the Ottumwa Days Inn spa. The Ottumwa Health Department was made aware of the complaint on June 10. “

 Ottumwa inspectors immediately tested the facilities and found that both the pool and spa had not been disinfected.

 

Gates said that the pool met code when it was last inspected in March by the city. One of the requirements for the pool facilities is that they have a certified pool operator. That person is in charge of testing the chemicals and making sure the facilities meet the requirements of the city and state codes. The Days Inn did not have a certified pool operator, Gates said. However, Gates noted, Legionella disease has not been confirmed to be present in the Ottumwa pools. They are awaiting test results that should be returned later this week.

“These rules are important because people can get sick if they are not complied,” Gates said, adding that she’s never had a complaint like this in her experience in the health department.

For more:   http://www.tradingmarkets.com/news/stock-alert/dinn_swimming-pool-and-spa-at-the-days-inn-closed-down-987378.html

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by | May 31, 2010 · 5:00 am

Hotel Industry Health Risks: Centers For Disease Control (CDC) Finds Serious Pool Bacteria Code Violations At 15% Of Over 16,000 Hotels, Motels And Resorts

The Centers for Disease Control and Control and Prevention found that, aside from childcare facilities, that 16,569 hotels, resorts and motels had the highest rate of closure due to serious code violations, mainly low disinfectant in the water to battle bacteria, about 15% or 1 in 6 hotel inspections.

Shigella and novovirus cause stomach and intestinal infections like gastroenteritis. Another microorganism found in pools is pseudomonas, which causes harmless but unsightly pustules on the skin.

To prevent closures or violations, hotel managers and staff should be using routine maintenance and sanitation, with frequent pool checks during high use when chlorine will get a work-out. Anyone, including a member of the hotel staff can check the pH level of the pool by using free test strips available from the Water Quality & Health Council (water levels should be within 7.2 to 7.8.)

For more:   http://industry.bnet.com/travel/10006301/cut-the-crap-the-dark-side-of-hotel-pools-and-how-to-manage-it/

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by | April 1, 2010 · 6:10 am

Restaurant Food Safety: The Top 10 Foods That Carry Salmonella Infection-Causing Bacteria Include Leafy Greens, Eggs, Tuna, Oysters And Potatoes

LEAFY GREENS: 363 outbreaks involving 13,568 reported cases of illness

EGGS: 352 outbreaks involving 11,163 reported cases of illness

TUNA: 268 outbreaks involving 2341 reported cases of illness

OYSTERS: 132 outbreaks involving 3409 reported cases of illness

POTATOES: 108 outbreaks involving 3659 reported cases of illness

CHEESE: 83 outbreaks involving 2761 reported cases of illness

ICE CREAM: 74 outbreaks involving 2594 reported cases of illness

TOMATOES: 31 outbreaks involving 3292 reported cases of illness

SPROUTS: 31 outbreaks involving 2022 reported cases of illness

BERRIES: 25 outbreaks involving 3397 reported cases of illness

 

Illnesses caused by these ten foods may be as minor as stomachcramps and diarrhea for a day or two, or as serious as kidney failure or death. Notably, pathogens most commonly associated with meat and poultry—such as been repeatedly linked to these food items.

In fact, Salmonella2 and E. coli O157:H73—also have Salmonella was identified as the cause in 33 percent of the outbreaks from the FDA Top Ten. Other pathogens causing the outbreaks associated with these foods include and Campylobacter, Scombrotoxin, Norovirus,Vibrio.4

http://cspinet.org/new/pdf/cspi_top_10_fda.pdf

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