Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a serious health hazard and it strikes in places where people least expect to catch something – in hospitals and surgeries.

MRSA is a serious hazard because it is resistant to antibiotics as are an increasing number of bacteria which have historically been treated with them.  The implication for us as humans who are looking to medical science to cure us is clear – if you catch these antibiotic-resistant bugs you are going to have get better on your own!

Prevention is certainly better than cure in this instance and medical labels are riding to the rescue once again.

A major source of transmission of infection takes place where there are concentrations of ill people with a range of different infectious illnesses – going to a hospital will bring you into close proximity with these bugs if not directly, then certainly with doctors, nurses and other staff who are themselves constantly exposed to these bacteria.  This is why personal and environmental hygiene are so important and a great deal of time and money is spent on ensuring everyone washes their hands and does so in a thorough manner (seriously, washing your hands in a “medical fashion” is something which is taught and not at all instinctive as you and I would perform it after a visit to the bathroom).

Now consider this scenario – a nurse is told to give a patient with a bacterial infection a dose of antibiotics to a patient – the pills are in a bottle kept just for that patient and the nurse is conscientious and gives the patient the dose.  They replace the bottle of pills and then wash their hands before moving on to the next patient – there is no way the next patient is catching the bug from this nurse right?

Wrong!

The bug is still on the pill bottle and it will come into contact with other pill bottles or medication or the nurse, or some other person who will the transfer the bug.

Unless the bottle and label of the medication container are themselves acting as antibacterial agents and are eliminating the bugs which come into contact with them.  Increasingly, hospitals and medical facilities are picking up on the use of containers and labels which are manufactured with highly effective anti-bacterial properties built into them.  It has been estimated that 90% of bacterial transfers by medical staff can be cut completely by simply adopting the practice of using an anti-bacterial label, but let’s hope you never have to find out for yourself in practice!

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