U.S. Airmen may have been exposed to HIV and hepatitis due to contaminated scopes at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, according to an article on the Becker's Infection Control and Clinical Quality website.
U.S. Air Force investigators found endoscopes were sterilized improperly from April 2008 to April 2016.
Air Force health officials have issued a patient safety alert to ensure healthcare workers at the base are complying with cleaning, decontamination, inspection and sterilization processes recommended for the endoscopes, the article said.
Medical officials are also reaching out to potentially exposed patients and encouraging them to be tested.
Seeking Standards for Microbial Loads in Healthcare Facilities
UCR Health Unveils Plans for Major Expansion
High-Performance Windows Support Safety at UW Medicine's New Behavioral Health Center
Central Maine Healthcare Dealing with IT System Outage
Kaiser Permanente Opens Newly Expanded Everett Medical Center