Hundreds of people were possibly exposed to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and the virus that can cause AIDs, officials say.
Nearly 450 patients at a hospital in Massachusetts might have been exposed to hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV due to poor administration of IV medications, said the hospital in a statement.
Salem Hospital told news outlets this week that patients undergoing an endoscopy—including colonoscopies, laparoscopies, and bronchoscopies—at the hospital may have been exposed to the pathogens over the past several years. The patients, it added, were exposed when IV medications were given “in a manner not consistent with our best practice.”
“The infections we are testing for are hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV, which are standard tests for a potential exposure of this kind,” the hospital told People in a statement. “A small portion of our endoscopy patients, nearly 450 patients, were potentially impacted over a period of roughly two years.”
The chance that patients were infected is “extremely small” and no patients reported infections as of this week, a hospital spokesman told People magazine.
“After a comprehensive review, including feedback from public health officials at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, we have determined that the infection risk to patients from this event is extremely small,” the hospital stated, reported WHDH-TV.
“The safety of our patients is our highest priority and we have undertaken multiple corrective actions in response to this event,” it added.
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health told ABC News and CNN that it investigated the hospital and worked with an onsite team to deal with the situation. The agency “advised the hospital to notify all impacted patients in writing about the potential exposure to bloodborne pathogens and to offer free-of-charge follow-up care, including testing,” the state’s health department said.
A spokesperson for the health agency separately told news outlets that it also advised the hospital “to offer free-of-charge follow-up care, including testing.” The hospital confirmed it will offer tests for hepatitis and HIV, noting “they are common blood-borne pathogenic viruses that often don’t produce symptomatic infection.”
Salem Hospital also offered an apology to those who were potentially exposed. “We sincerely apologize to those who have been impacted and we remain committed to delivering high-quality, compassionate health care to our community,” it said in a statement.
