By Mike McEvoy
EMS Editor
A study published this year in the Mayo Clinic Proceedings compared contamination of physician hands to their stethoscopes. After a single-patient exam, contamination of the stethoscope diaphragm was second only to physician’s fingertips. In virtually all of the 83 patient exams studied at the University of Geneva Hospital in Switzerland, stethoscope diaphragms pick up more bacteria than physician palms, the inside and outside of their hands. The study, “Contamination of Stethoscopes and Physicians’ Hands after a Physical Examination” provides tough evidence that stethoscopes are potentially responsible for spread of bacteria. This, in turn, suggests a need for routine cleaning and disinfection of stethoscopes. While healthcare workers continue to be the primary source for transmission of bacteria, medical instruments are becoming another vector for spread of germs.
Reference:
Longtin Y, Schneider A, Tschopp C, Renzi G, Gayet-Ageron A, Schrenzel J, Pittet D. Contamination of stethoscopes and physicians’ hands after a physical examination. Mayo Clin Proc. 2014;89(3):291-299.
MIKE McEVOY, PhD, NRP, RN, CCRN is the EMS Coordinator for Saratoga County, NY and the Fire Engineering EMS editor. He is a nurse clinician in the cardiac surgical ICU at Albany Medical Center in New York where he also co-chairs the hospital resuscitation committee. Mike is a paramedic supervisor for Clifton Park & Halfmoon Ambulance and the chief medical officer for West Crescent Fire Department. He is an EMS Section Board Member for the International Association of Fire Chiefs and a popular speaker at Fire, EMS, and medical conference worldwide.
