BMH receives one positive test for Legionella
MUNCIE — IU Health Ball Memorial Hospital continues to have water restrictions in place in one section of the facility after tests came back Friday that included one positive test for the Legionella bacteria, officials said this week.
Jeff Bird, MD, chief medical officer and chief operating officer at IU Health BMH, told The Star Press that the hospital sent in about 175 water samples after one patient in the hospital tested positive for the Legionella bacteria. All of the tests on water taken from inpatient areas of the hospital — the North Tower, South Tower and East and West wings — came back negative, so the hospital has resumed normal water usage and operations in those areas.
But there was one test from the Outpatient Medical Pavilion that came back positive, so the water restrictions remained in place there. Those restrictions include not drinking from any faucets, sinks or fountains, and no showers, and that policy will stay in place until the next round of results are returned in 10-14 days.
"The Outpatient Medical Pavilion was also tested, because it is on a separate water source," Bird said. "And we did get one positive test for a low-level legionella bacteria, so we treated it."
The OMP is the section of the hospital directly to the left of the main entrance. It houses the emergency department, observation unit and additional space that is leased to physicians and physician groups. It also includes the Ball Outpatient Surgery Center, where surgical procedures are done when an overnight stay is not required.
IU Health BMH still taking precautions after Legionnaires' case identified
Those test results were returned to the hospital Friday, and the water source at the OMP was treated Saturday.
Hospital officials decided to have the thorough water tests after one patient was diagnosed with a case of Legionnaires disease.
Legionnaires' disease, a respiratory illness, is caused by inhaling mist or vapor (small droplets of water in the air) that has been contaminated with Legionella bacteria. Common sources include water in showers, hot tubs, cooling towers in large air conditioning systems and decorative fountains, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The bacteria, common in small amounts in public water supplies, generally does not affect healthy people but can cause illness and even death in those with weakened immune systems.
Bird said there was no way to know how the patient contracted the disease, and that he could have had it even before being admitted. No other patients have tested positive.
Bird said he was pleased with how the hospital staff handled the situation.
"I'm Incredibly proud of our team," he said. "They rolled with it beautifully. Getting in the amount of bottled water that we needed was a huge task, getting it to the floors and to the patients. All we could use water for was flushing toilet and washing hands. It was a real challenge. It was an inconvenience for our staff, no doubt, but for our patients, too."
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