Canada: Up to 2,700 Alberta Patients to Be Tested After Used Syringes Used on Patients

On Monday, health officials in Alberta announced that up to 2,700 patients of the High Prairie Health Complex will need to be tested for HIV and hepatitis. A handful of nurses involved in endoscopic and dental surgery procedures had routinely reused syringes in patients' IV lines, officials said. The practice was discovered earlier this month by a manager, and three weeks were necessary to identify the affected patients.

No infections have been uncovered, and the risk is very low, but "it is not an acceptable practice that we have identified and that's why we stopped the practice," said Dr. Albert de Villiers, the region's medical health officer.

Alberta Health will coordinate a notification effort involving about 1,300 patients who had an endoscopic procedure during four years dating back to March 2004, and up to 1,400 patients who had dental surgery dating back to 1990. Many of the dental patients were likely children, said de Villiers.

"It might be tricky to track down all patients," de Villiers said. "We will try our best."

Alberta's Quality Health Council is involved in the investigation, but hospital staff members were reportedly reluctant to answer questions. Both registered nurses and licensed practical nurses reused syringes, though both groups receive training on safe injection practices, said a spokesperson for the health region.

"We're talking about a group of staff isolated in one department in the facility," said Tim Guest, a vice president of the health region. "It's not widespread in the entire facility. [It's] a very small number of employees -- less than five."

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