There’s a spectre looming across hospital wards across the country. It lurks in corridors and clings to hospital beds. And more and more every day, doctors are struggling in their fight against it. It’s antibiotic-resistant bacteria – and it’s sending hospitals into disarray.
Dr Neil Todd, microbiologist and clinical director of laboratory medicine at York Hospitals Trust, has compared the threat of bacteria to the risk of global warming.
“This is causing enormous problems for health services globally,” said Todd.
Indeed, the past decade has seen a flurry of new bacteria emerge that are resistant to all known antibiotics. And in lieu of these life-saving remedies, extreme hygiene caution has become the only answer.
According to Professor Colin Garner, around 5,000 patients have died from antibiotic-resistant infections this year. The York-based professor has founded a new foundation dedicated to the development of new antibiotics.
What’s worrying scientists?
The problem, then, is major, and it’s making a number of scientists very worried. Just imagine the global catastrophe if all bacteria became resistant to antibiotics.
In part, our overuse of antibiotics lies at the heart of the problem. In using these seemingly miraculous remedies for most ailments, bacteria have built an immunity towards them.
While hospitals wait for new antibiotics to be formulated, the best solution is to have a peerless hygiene system in place.
With our healthcare waste solutions, the rubbish and highly contaminable waste in your hospital will be disposed of in an effective and hygienic manner. So you know who to call if you want to reduce the rate of bacteria in your medical institution.
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