Infection Control Resources to Identify Klebsiella and Other Pathogens in Healthcare Settings throughout Puerto Rico

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes Klebsiella as a type of gram-negative bacteria that can cause different types of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). These include pneumonia, bloodstream infections, wound or surgical site infections, and meningitis. The agency warns Klebsiella bacteria have increasingly developed antimicrobial resistance, most recently to the class of antibiotics known as carbapenems.

Klebsiella is normally found in the human intestines (where they do not cause disease), and also in human feces. CDC reports that in healthcare settings, Klebsiella infections commonly occur among sick patients who are receiving treatment for other conditions. For example, patients whose care requires devices like ventilators or intravenous catheters, and patients who are taking long courses of certain antibiotics are most at risk.

“There have been outbreaks of carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) in Puerto Rican hospitals over the years,” said Harry Pena, President of Zimmetry Environmental. “Outbreaks and individual infections are typically due to person-to-person contact, contaminated medical devices or equipment, or contamination of the indoor environment. The good news is there are ways to test equipment, surfaces and other environmental samples for Klebsiella and other pathogens to assess the effectiveness of cleaning and disinfection procedures or to help identify the source of an outbreak if one has already occurred.”

Dedicated to supporting infection control programs to mitigate exposure risks are the professionals at Zimmetry Environmental. They offer buildings assessments, environmental testing, monitoring, consulting and infection control training services. They even recently sponsored an educational video about Klebsiella and potential exposure risks in healthcare settings that can be seen at: https://youtu.be/inYfYcISTQI

To learn more about Zimmetry Environmental and their infection control, indoor environmental quality, compliance and consulting services, please visit www.zimmetry.com, call (787) 995.0005 or email info@zimmetry.com .

About Zimmetry Environmental
Since 2002, Zimmetry Environmental has been providing environmental consulting services to building owners and managers, architects, engineers, EHS professionals and Fortune 500 companies. The company is based in Puerto Rico and provides services across the Caribbean and Central America. The professionals at Zimmetry offer environmental compliance, indoor air quality, asbestos, lead-based paint, Phase I ESAs and general environmental consulting services.

Contact Information

Paul Cochrane

President

Cochrane & Associates, LLC

Contact via E-mail