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Did your mother ever say to you "go wash your hands or
someone will die?"
Of course not. But maybe she should have, especially if you
were going to grow up to be a doctor or a nurse or someone
working in a public health care system.
Hospital acquired infections are killing people more than we
know. One case I recently heard about affected someone
visiting the hospital who was not even a patient!
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) projected this year
that one of every 22 patients would get an infection while
hospitalized. This comes out to 1.7 million cases a year.
Out of this 99,000 will die. And this can happen from
something that begins as a simple routine procedure.
This is why I get so nuts when someone I care about goes to
the hospital for anything - from an Emergency Room visit to
a little nip and tuck. . . and my family just doesn't
understand! They think I am overly concerned.
But you see I know the world of microbes (I loved
microbiology) and I know the parties these little guys like
to have, especially in hospitals with open flesh. Starting
an intravenous alone opens flesh.
When I worked clinically as a nurse I worked in ICU
(Intensive Care Unit) with many fresh post-operative
patients (people who just returned from surgery). It is
always important to wash hands before and after we take care
of patients, but especially with patients who have had
surgery.
I used to see doctors mosey in to see patients and flip off
the covers, open the bandages and look at the surgical site,
and then go to the next patients and do the same thing. .
.and not wash their hands. I don't mean to only pick on
doctors - some other personnel (x-ray techs, etc)
participated in that too.
I often wonder if that is still happening these days in
the hospitals. I think the answer is yes as we see the rise
in hospital infections.
Hospitals now have antibacterial soaps and gels for health
care workers to use on their hands. But that has created a
whole host of other problems. It is very irritating to the
skin for many people. Probably because the active ingredient
in most antibacterial products is triclosan, an
antibacterial agent that kills bacteria but it also has been
shown to kill human cells.
But most importantly antibacterial soaps and gels contribute
to the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Enter
"MRSA"-Methylcillin Resistant Staph Aureus - one of the
super-bugs that is brilliant enough to know how to resist
antibiotics. But guess what it doesn't know how to fight?
Essential
Oils!
Research done by Sue Chao last year through Young Living
showed that the
essential oil blend "RC" was extremely effective against
MRSA. Other blends such as Thieves can be very effective
against most pathogenic organisms as well.
The problem of resistant super bugs like
MRSA and other strains extend beyond the hospital. This
is an issue that is becoming part of our every day life.
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Direct comments or questions about this article, including
requests for reprint rights, to:
Marilee Tolen RN, HNC - Board
Certified Holistic Nurse
HomeSpaLady™
“. . .natural remedies for health and beauty that you
can do at home!”
Get your FREE “Tips of the Week” at
http://www.HomeSpaLady.com
www.HealingEnergies.com
Learn more about
essential
oils here
856.857.1799
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