More patients expected?
Photo: Meir Ohayon
48 carriers of super bug still in hospitals
Dozens still hospitalized with antibiotic-resistant bacterial infection, which had killed at least 120 as of Tuesday; health ministry to go on high alert
Forty-eight people are currently hospitalized in Israel,
in danger of succumbing to the antibiotic-resistant bacteria Klebsiella pneumoniae, a Ynet investigation revealed Wednesday.
Among the families of the deceased, 10 have decided to sue the hospitals. Attorney Tal Nevo, who is representing the families along with Anat Molson, said "these deaths could have been prevented had the Health Ministry not hidden the facts.
The Health Ministry has yet to announce precise statistics regarding the number of hospital patients currently carrying the bacteria, but a Tuesday news report previously revealed that the bacteria has infected some 400-500 people and already caused over 120 Israeli deaths.
Deadly Bacterium
Meital Yasur-Beit Or
Virulent stain of bacteria believed to be cause of death of 120-200 patients in hospitals. Experts explain most of those infected were already suffering from prior medical conditions. Health ministry says outbreak was kept secret to avoid mass panic
"There aren't enough single rooms in the hospitals, patients are infected quickly and, therefore, it turns out that sometimes it's safer at home. The public must be given the right to discharge their loved ones from the hospital," he added.
According to Nevo, the families may request that a state inquiry committee be formed to examine the matter.
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry, who before Tuesday had attempted to keep quiet about the bacteria in order to prevent mass panic, decided Wednesday night that it was time to move to a state of high alert.
A special medical team will be sent to monitor hospitals and ensure that they are following procedures to prevent the spread of the bacteria. Next Thursday, hospital directors are scheduled to meet with the Health Ministry's director-general, to request budget increases in light of the intensified measures.
Despite the intensified preparations, Prof. Yehuda Carmeli, the head of the epidemiology unit at the Sourasky Medical Center in Tel Aviv, emphasized that, while the casualty rate has been high, many of the patients who passed away had been suffering from previous medical conditions.
