Exeter (N.H.) Hospital and the state Division of Public Health Services has launched a joint investigation to determine how four patients with common elements in their clinical history were recently diagnosed with hepatitis C.
The common place of connection for the infected individuals at Exeter Hospital appears to involve the Cardiac Cath Lab. As a result, Exeter Hospital voluntarily suspended operations in the Cardiac Cath Lab on last week, pending the completion of appropriate testing. Hospital officials anticipate that the lab will be cleared to resume operations shortly.
As part of the investigation, state and hospital officials are in the process of proactively reaching out via phone and letters to all patients who received care in the Cardiac Cath Lab since August 2011 to recommend they return for hepatitis C testing. In the meantime, both organizations will work to determine the source of the infection.
The common place of connection for the infected individuals at Exeter Hospital appears to involve the Cardiac Cath Lab. As a result, Exeter Hospital voluntarily suspended operations in the Cardiac Cath Lab on last week, pending the completion of appropriate testing. Hospital officials anticipate that the lab will be cleared to resume operations shortly.
As part of the investigation, state and hospital officials are in the process of proactively reaching out via phone and letters to all patients who received care in the Cardiac Cath Lab since August 2011 to recommend they return for hepatitis C testing. In the meantime, both organizations will work to determine the source of the infection.
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