Doctor’s Mistake Puts More than 2000 Patients at Risk of STIs

Mistake or malice? A physician at Christian Healthcare Center, Providence, potentially exposed more than 2,400 patients to multiple infections, including HIV and Hepatitis B and C, due to a hospital protocol violation.

Providence says, “We recently learned that Providence’s comprehensive infection control practices may not have been followed by a physician during some procedures at Portland-area hospitals, including Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center, Providence Portland Medical Center and other non-Providence hospitals.”

Specifically, two patients at Providence Portland Medical Center, 221 patients at Legacy Mount Hood Medical Center in Gresham, 2200 patients at Providence Willamette Falls Medical Center in Oregon City are at low risk of exposure to possible infections.

The identity of the anesthesiologist, formerly employed with the Oregon Anesthesiology Group, hasn’t been disclosed to the public. Providence also didn’t exactly clarify what the protocol violation was. 

If you fear you may be among those affected by this unfortunate debacle, Province is in the process of notifying patients through mailed letters and message notifications in MyChart, a secure, online system used to provide health updates to patients.

The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) writes, “Oregon Health Authority acknowledges the worry, pain, and loss suffered by anyone affected by a healthcare-associated infection (HAI)—an infection acquired while they are receiving care in a hospital or other health facility. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about one in 31 hospital patients in the U.S. has at least one HAI on any given day.”

The Oregon Anesthesiology Group says, “When we learned that the physician had violated infection control practices, we suspended him, informed our partners Legacy Health and Providence, and then began an investigation that resulted in the physician’s termination. Even though the risk of infection was low, new protocols and procedures have been put in place to prevent similar incidents in the future.”

It’s an unfortunate mistake that could cost thousands of people devastating changes to their lives. However, the risk of being infected is low. We can only hope the number of positive test results are as well.

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