Hi Anne, Our hosptial as well as fitness centers, doctors offices and etc. have changed over to the alcohol "wash". In our NICU we do our original 3 min. scrub but use the alcohol between each patient contact. It was told to the staff (we didn't really like it at first) that it kills 99% bacteria and viruses and would decrease the number of nosicomial infections. It seems to be working in our unit. We still have soap for initial scrub & the public restrooms. I have noticed not all the hospitals locally use this exclusively. The near by military hospital does though. This was a result of the CDCs recomendation: (I could not locate the exact reference) I n October of 2002, the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) released a recommendation to use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer instead of an anti-bacterial hand soap, because it is a much more efficient method "to reduce the spread of viruses and bacteria." Hope this helps, sorry I could not locate the exact reference. You might find it on the CDC web site. Ann Slaughter RN, IBCLC ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 25 May 2004 15:19:11 -0700 From: "Duret, Anne" <[log in to unmask]> Subject: MRSA / VRE Posted with ListMom permission: We had an in-service at our facility today about MRSA / VRE as it is on = the rise in our community, especially in the outpatient world. The = biggest take-away for me was, the facility wants us to use the alcohol = hand gel for cleaning in between handwashing. I have read here on LactNet and in other places (sorry, can't recall any = references...) that the rise of MRSA and yeast may be attributable to = the increased use of these hand gels and antibacterial soaps, etc. I = myself have avoided such products, and have counseled moms I work with = to avoid them as well, particularly when I get a mom with persistent = yeast who has been using an antibacterial soap. Of note, we have had two patients in the last 18 months who called with = c/o mastitis who went on to have MRSA infections which required = hospitalization. So my question to the list is what are people doing in your = facilities/communities in regards to working with moms/babies, keeping = yourselves well-protected at work, and how do you advise the moms you = work with? I see how this might de-escalate to become non-breastfeeding = related, so just info specifically about using antibacterial soaps and = gels for hands and breasts is what I'm after. Anne Duret, RN Maternity Care Coordinator PHMG-OB Area F 687-6251 Fax 687-6089=20 =20 ------------------------------------------------------- *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html