Germs in Hospitals and Doctor Offices – Watch Out!

Germs can be dangerous, causing a wide range of infectious diseases. Some people go to extremes to avoid germs, but for most of us, we just try to be careful, while trying not to think about it. But we can’t escape germs, even in places we think are clean. Did you know doctor offices and hospitals are often breeding grounds for germs? Pretty ironic – we visit these places for healing, but by simply being at a medical facility, we increase our risk of disease. The fact is, across the board, there are dangerous germs in hospitals and doctor offices. What can you do to reduce your risk of getting sick?

A brief explanation of terminology – germs that cause diseases are called pathogens. For ease of reading, when I say “germs”, I am referring to pathogens.

Why should you care about germs in hospitals and doctor’s offices?

Because some germs cause serious infections, several of which are resistant to antibiotics. And, some are life-threatening. Healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) are a leading problem of health systems worldwide, including in the US.

In 2015 in the US, approximately 687,000 hospitalized patients acquired HCAIs while being treated for other health issues, and more than 72,000 patients died while in the hospital.

And those statistics don’t include non-hospitalized patients, such as patients receiving care through long-term care centers, ambulatory care centers, family medicine clinics, and at home.

How do germs in hospitals and doctors office spread?

Although germs are microscopic, they can easily spread to and between patients. Germs can get into your body through contact with your eyes, nose, mouth, genitals, and/or open wounds.

In most cases, these germs come from your own hands (if you touched contaminated surfaces) or from someone else’s hands (who touched contaminated surfaces and then touched you). But you can also get infected from contact with contaminated medical instruments or from breathing in germs.

Germs really like to hang around.

Did you know that germs can live for weeks on stainless steel or polymer surfaces? Furthermore, antibiotic-resistant MRSA may exist on surfaces up to 360 days, and spore-forming bacteria, including C. diff., can survive for months.

Where are the germs in hospitals and doctor offices?

Everywhere!

Some of the many places where germs in hospitals and doctors’ offices live and breed, include:

1. On hands.

When doctors, nurses and other staff don’t routinely wash their hands, they can spread germs from one patient to another. Although it seems obvious that all medical staff should wash their hands before and after seeing each patient, sadly it doesn’t happen consistently.

In fact, a 2014 study found that less than 1/3 of healthcare workers in an ICU (intensive care unit) always washed their hands. Why are so many skipping this important step? Likely a combination of forgetfulness, time-pressures, sensitive skin, and apathy.

What can you do?

Although it might feel awkward, you can, and should, ask all medical professionals to wash their hands and/or put on clean gloves before they touch you.

Also mention it before they touch medical equipment. I’ve had to make this request several times myself, and some doctors agree quickly while others grunt. But they’ve all washed their hands or put on clean gloves. This one step can easily reduce your risk of serious infections.

Also, you should wash your own hands frequently in medical settings. Additionally, before you leave a medical office or hospital, wash your hands. This advice applies to patients, family members and guests.

For more information, read Handwashing in Healthcare Could Save Your Life!

2. On items in waiting rooms.

It’s safe to assume that sick patients touch everything in the waiting rooms of doctors’ offices and emergency rooms. Whether it’s toys, books, arms of chairs, door handles or knobs, it’s likely covered in germs. Same goes for the “community pen” you use to sign in and/or fill out forms.

What can you do?

First, bring your own entertainment, including toys and comfort items for your children. Bring your own pen and use it to fill out forms. Also, try not to touch your face while in waiting rooms. And wash your hands when you leave.

3. In the air.

No one wants to be near others who are coughing and sneezing. As you might suspect, the air in doctor’s offices can contain airborne germs that can make patients sick.

In one study, researchers found that patients who exposed to influenza-like illness in a medical office setting were more likely than non-exposed patients to revisit the doctor with a similar illness within 2 weeks of their initial exposure.

What can you do?

As we have heard repeatedly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, covering your mouth and nose with a mask can help reduce the risk of infections. Also, wash your hands frequently, especially as you leave the doctor’s office, and avoid touching your eyes, mouth or nose with hands that might be contaminated with germs.

And if you’re the one coughing and sneezing, follow CDC guidelines to reduce the risk of exposing others to your germs: Cover your mouth and nose with your elbow (or ideally with a tissue) when you cough or sneeze. And throw all tissues in the trash immediately after use.

4. On stethoscopes.

Stethoscopes can be covered in germs, including some strains that are antibiotic-resistant.

Unfortunately, an analysis of 28 studies found that, on average, 85% of stethoscopes were covered in germs, with a range of 47 – 100%. In other words, the vast majority of stethoscopes have germs on their surface. And research shows germs can transfer from scope to skin.

The good news – most of the germs on stethoscopes don’t cause illnesses. But there is concern that stethoscopes could harbor dangerous germs which can make patients quite sick.

Cleaning helps significantly.

Various studies show that disinfecting stethoscopes with isopropyl alcohol could eliminate 99% of bacteria.

What can you do?

Although the risk of infection is low, the possibility of getting an antibiotic-resistant germ is reason enough to pay attention. Cleaning the diaphragm of a stethoscope (the part that touches your skin) is easy, but it must be done frequently to keep germs off the surface.

Before your doctor places a stethoscope on you, ask him/her to clean the diaphragm with alcohol, an alcohol wipe, or with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.

5. On doctors’ white lab coats.

Many doctors routinely wear white lab coats, but it turns out that these coats often harbor germs. According to a NY Times article, dozens of studies show that white lab coats are frequently contaminated with harmful bacteria, including antibiotic-resistant strains.

As many as 16% of coats were contaminated with MRSA, and up to 42% had Gram-negative germs (an increasingly drug-resistant class of bacteria that includes E Coli and other dangerous germs).

Why? One likely explanation is that the long sleeves can easily come into contact with patients’ bodies – thereby both picking up and spreading germs. Interestingly, in 2008, Britain’s National Health Service started requiring doctors to go “bare below the elbows,” to prevent the spread of infections from long sleeves.

What makes this worse?

Doctors don’t wash their lab coats frequently. A survey of 183 doctors and medical students at one hospital revealed surprising, and upsetting, results for how frequently this group washed their lab coats:

• 1% – every day
• 2% – every other day
• 39% – once a week
• 40% – once a month
• 17% – never

What can you do?

The good news is that many doctors no longer wear white lab coats. The bad news is that unless you feel comfortable asking your doctor to either remove his/her coat or roll up his/her sleeves, there is little you can do.

However, I hope that if more patients state a preference for doctors to abandon the white lab coats, the trend to forgo these germ-ridden coats may continue.

6. On healthcare workers’ cell phones and tablets.

Doctors and other medical staff regularly use cell phones and tablets as part of their job. Healthcare workers use them for a variety of tasks, including calculating medication dosages, reviewing laboratory and imaging results, and accessing patient data.

But their phones are phones are covered with germs, including dangerous antibiotic-resistant MRSA.

How many germs? A recent study of cell phones used by staff in ICU units found 107 dangerous species of bacteria in 491 samples.

Why is this an issue for patients?

Unfortunately, healthcare workers rarely clean their mobile phones – research shows that approximately 90% never clean their phones. Since healthcare workers often touch their phones during or after a physical examination of patients and handling specimens, it’s easy for staff to transfer these germs to patients.

And the problem persists because healthcare workers don’t wash their hands as frequently as they should (see #1 above).

What can you do?

First, for this reason and many others, always make sure your doctors (or other staff members) wash their hands in front of you or puts on clean gloves. Additionally, if they use a tablet or phone in your presence, make sure they re-wash their hands or put on clean gloves. Don’t be afraid to speak up – your health depends on it!

7. On hard and soft surfaces in patient rooms.

Germs are everywhere in hospital patient rooms!

There are germs on pretty much everything in a patient’s hospital room, including bed rails, call buttons, tray tables, light switches, privacy curtains, medical equipment, IV poles, telephones, chair armrests, door handles, the floors and even on the bed sheets!

A few examples:

• One study of patient privacy curtains found that after 2 weeks, over 60% newly cleaned curtains tested positive for MRSA.
• Researchers found that conventional laundering of hospital bed sheets left 60% of C. diff. spores on the newly laundered sheets.
• Floors in hospitals are dirty and often neglected. Researchers found that floors in patient rooms were frequently contaminated with disease-causing germs, such as MRSA and C. diff. Furthermore, items frequently touched by patients and staff, such as blood pressure cuffs and call buttons, were often in contact with the floor. Not surprisingly, touching objects that had been in contact with the dirty floor frequently led to the transfer of these disease-causing germs from the floor to a hand. Learn more about this in my post How Dirty are Hospital Floors?

What can you do?

First, assume that all surfaces in doctors’ offices and hospitals have germs. Periodically use wipes with bleach to clean surfaces that the patient and/or visitors will touch. And wash your hands often, throughout the day, especially after touching objects in the room.

Additionally, since research shows that single-patient rooms are associated with a significant reduction in infection and in the quantity of germs present, try to get a private room.

8. On contaminated medical instruments.

Contaminated instruments can cause infections that can cause serious harm, even death. Many complex, reusable instruments, such as endoscopes, duodenoscopes and arthroscopic shavers, are hard to clean, disinfect and sterilize.

And since these germs are microscopic, no one can see any contamination. If instruments are not thoroughly cleaned and disinfected, the tissue or fluid from one patient can remain on the instrument and infect subsequent patients. An analysis by ECRI found that staff did not always follow required cleaning steps, increasing the risk of infections.

Badly designed duodenoscopes can cause serious harm.

However, sometimes the design of the instrument makes it impossible to thoroughly clean, allowing infections to occur even when staff follows the manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning, disinfection and sterilization.

This is a particular concern with duodenoscopes, which have persistent high levels of contamination due to cleaning challenges. On August 29, 2019, the FDA issued a statement recommending that “health care facilities and manufacturers begin transitioning to duodenoscopes with disposable components to reduce risk of patient infection”.

Urological endoscopes associated with recent deaths.

On April 1, 2021, the FDA announced it is investigating patient infections and other possible contamination issues associated with the reuse of urological endoscopes (devices to view and access the urinary tract). To reuse these types of medical instruments, hospitals must use cleaning and high-level disinfection or sterilization.

The report comes after 450 reports of contamination and patient infection linked to reused urologic endoscopes over the past four years, as well as 3 recent deaths (outside of the US) associated with infections from these instruments.

At this time, the FDA is not sure if the design of the instrument, or the lack of proper cleaning, sterilization, or maintenance led to these deaths.

What can you do?

Unfortunately, there is little patients can do to reduce their risk of infection from improperly-cleaned, unsterile instruments. But, if you need a procedure that will involve the use of invasive instruments, it can’t hurt to ask your doctor how the hospital keeps its instruments contamination-free.

You can look up healthcare-acquired infection rates on Medicare’s Care Compare website, but the site doesn’t provide data on infections from medical instruments. But, it will give you an idea about how the hospital fares on other infections, although some say the data is flawed.

You can also review the hospital-acquired infection rates on The Leapfrog Group website.

For more information, read What’s Your Hospital’s Safety Record? Is Your Hospital Safe?

Wash your hands the right way to eliminate germs!

Although washing your hands won’t protect you from all of the germs in hospitals, knowing how to properly wash your hands will help you reduce your risk of infection. In order to protect yourself, wash your hands following these 5 steps recommended by the CDC:

• Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap.
• Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
• Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds.
• Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
• Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.

Importantly, realize that alcohol-based hand sanitizers will not kill all germs, including C. diff. Of course, using a sanitizer is better than nothing, but if possible, use water and soap. And if you must use a hand sanitizer, look for one that contains at least 60% alcohol.

Learn more about germs in hospitals.

Read my blog posts:

• Protect Yourself from Superbugs.
• How to Protect Yourself from Hospital Infections.
• Why is Sepsis so Dangerous?

NOTE: I updated this post on 8-5-21.