Search below for the latest C-diff news stories. Get the latest information on how North Texans are fighting to reduce C-diff infections in our community.
February 26, 2015
DALLAS — It may seem a little extreme to hold off on hugging your little girl until she promises she washed her hands with soap, but that might just be what it takes to avoid Clostridium difficile, or “C. diff.” And if you’re like us, you probably do want to avoid it.
“C. diff is a bacteria that causes infections in your intestines,” explained Patti Taylor from the DFW Hospital Council Foundation. She’s in charge of a campaign to fight C. diff in the Metroplex and beyond. “Main symptoms are diarrhea, nausea, loss of appetite, and fever.”
Yuck! And get this, the CDC just released a study that found way more cases than they expected. Nearly half a million people get C. Diff infections every year in the U.S. alone, and 29,000-plus die of it.
Jeez, and we thought Ebola was bad.
“One in five people are a carrier and don’t even know it,” Taylor said. “So I could be touching a surface, you can touch that surface, you can touch your mouth then, and you can be infected with C. diff.”
So the big question is — how do we avoid this nasty stuff?
Taylor said the answer is simple. “After you use the restroom you need to wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. You’re not actually killing the spores. What you’re doing is washing them down the drain.”
And that’s something waterless hand sanitizers just don’t do. So, be safe and wash your hands with soap!
Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council Foundation is your health headquarters. We work to unite North Texas hospital and industry leaders to advance quality healthcare in our region. With over 45 years of collaboration, we are working together to raise the level of awareness around health concerns like C-diff that affect the health and well-being of our community. LEARN MORE >
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The enclosed material was prepared and assembled by DFWHC Foundation Hospital Engagement Network, under contract with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Partnership for Patients Initiative. Contract #HHSM-500-2012-0025 Hospital Engagement Network .