Legionella pneumonia bacteria has been isolated in the water system of The Commons on St. Anthony, a 300-bed long-term nursing and short-term rehabilitation facility located at 3 Saint Anthony Street in Auburn, NY. The facility is operated by Loretto, a non-profit, Syracuse-based continuing care organization that manages multiple elder care facilities in Onondaga and Cayuga counties.
After one patient contracted Legionnaires’ disease, a bacterial lung infection that causes death in up to 50% of the elderly, immune-compromised patients who acquire it in healthcare settings, facility administrators arranged for environmental testing. According to Loretto’s Chief Operating Officer, Ellen O’Connor, no other cases of Legionnaire’s disease have been identified at this time:
“There are no known cases of legionella disease at the facility now and no one currently has symptoms … The (department of health) made recommendations on how to proceed and we are acting on their recommendations quickly.” (1)
Apparently, the Cayuga County Public Health Department was informed that a resident had been taken to a hospital on April 6th, where a Legionnaires’ disease diagnosis was confirmed by a lab test. After treatment, the patient was able to return to The Commons a week later (2). On May 6, The Commons on St. Anthony issued a fact sheet to residents, family, and staff to alert them to the case and the subsequent measures being taken at the facility.
A statement released by Cayuga County Public Health Director Kathleen Cuddy has confirmed that the Legionella population is limited to the facility’s potable water system; it has not been found in its cooling system.
Legionnaire’s Disease in Central New York State
The danger of Legionella pneumonia bacteria proliferation in healthcare facility potable and cooling water systems has been highly publicized over the last year in central New York. In March of 2015, a patient contracted Legionnaires’ disease at St. Joseph’s Health Center in Syracuse, NY, subsequently dying. The death remained unreported until November 2015, following the release of news in October that 3 other patients at the facility had also been diagnosed with LD (one of whom died). Environmental testing at the hospital at first found Legionella in an ice machine and two patient sinks; by December 2015, significant levels had also been found in the hospital’s cooling towers.
Sources:
- “Auburn health care facility resident contracts Legionnaires’ disease.” The Citizen. auburnpub.com. Web. 10 May. 2016.
- “Legionella bacteria found at Auburn nursing home after a resident tested positive.” CNYCENTRAL. Web. 10 May. 2016.