Tag Archives: HONOReform

Lauren Lollini Salutes Joe Perz and the CDC DHQP

June 16, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

Joseph Perz, DrPH, MA
Quality Standards and Safety Team Leader
for the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

I have held a special place in my heart for Dr. Joe Perz of the CDC for the last 5 years. Even though we have not met in person, we were introduced in a very peculiar way. You see, Joe was one of the first on the scene to investigate a potential outbreak in Colorado in the spring of 2009. The CDC was called in when it was determined there were two reported cases of hepatitis C from individuals who had surgeries at the same hospital just a day or two apart.

I was one of those two patients. I am eternally grateful to Joe and his colleagues for not only getting to the heart of the outbreak and allowing a broken system to be mended but for offering me a sense of understanding about how I had gotten infected. Along the way, several other healthcare professionals with whom I was in contact scoffed at my insistence that I had been infected during my healthcare procedure—and that many other patients had, too. Ever since this first unusual “meeting,” I have followed the tremendous work of Joe Perz and the CDC’s extraordinary Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion (DHQP). I’m a fan!

It is my privilege and honor to direct loyal readers of HONOReform’s weekly blog—and all people who are interested in joining us to change healthcare for the better—to this great new series of pages on the CDC website. “Risks of Healthcare-associated Infections from Drug Diversion” is a much- and long-needed resource. I encourage all healthcare workers to review this information—and to share it with colleagues.

http://www.cdc.gov/injectionsafety/drugdiversion/

Clearly, drug diversion prevention is a complicated issue. Everyone who is involved in this prevention work knows there is much work in many most of our healthcare systems in the United States that needs to be done. To that end, I have joined colleagues on the HONOReform-led Drug Diversion Prevention Committee. One of our goals is to help host a federal meeting in the fall on this issue.

Because of awareness and education efforts like the one developed by Joe Perz and his brilliant and committed colleagues, we are one step closer to an effective national system that will allow these types of never events a thing of the past.

I pledge to do everything I can to support efforts to prevent drug diversion.

Lauren Lollini Salutes Joe Perz and the CDC DHQP

Joseph Perz, DrPH, MA
Quality Standards and Safety Team Leader
for the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

I have held a special place in my heart for Dr. Joe Perz of the CDC for the last 5 years. Even though we have not met in person, we were introduced in a very peculiar way. You see, Joe was one of the first on the scene to investigate a potential outbreak in Colorado in the spring of 2009. The CDC was called in when it was determined there were two reported cases of hepatitis C from individuals who had surgeries at the same hospital just a day or two apart.

Drug diversion and the media by Lauren Lollini

June 2, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

Lauren is one of many Coloradans infected with Hepatitis C from a hospital outbreak in 2009.

Is your doctor addicted to drugs?

A scary question to ask, but one which has become necessary. And not just your doctor, but any other medical professional who might come into contact with controlled substances. I am not a pessimist by nature. I am a pessimist by experience.

Cathy Cassata takes an in-depth look not only at the problem, but also the solutions in her article posted a couple of weeks ago at TheFix.com.

I love this solution-focused approach, like Pete Eisler’s USA Today article from April, these pieces are not just the cold, hard facts, they include an education component so the average reader might take away tips to keep themselves safe. read more »

The North Dakota Outbreak: The Daughters of a Victim Speak Out, Call for Action

May 5, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

Tam Black and Jan Laudenschlager tell the heartbreaking story of how their father was infected with Hepatitis C while a resident at a long-term care facility in North Dakota.

Tam Black & Jan Laudenschlager are advocates for their dad in the North Dakota outbreak

Our Dad is one of the 44 victims of the Hepatitis C outbreak in North Dakota. The outbreak occurred at ManorCare, a long-term care/rehab facility in Minot. Dad spent six days at ManorCare in November of 2012 for physical therapy following a minor stroke. During his short stay, he had two blood draws and a tuberculosis test. After he returned home, he never got back the energy and strength levels he had prior to the stroke. We now attribute this to the Hepatitis C infection he caught just days after his stroke.

In July of 2013, he tested positive for Hepatitis C. It was a complete shock, and it still hasn’t really sunk in. The stigma of the infection was hard for both of our parents. They didn’t want anyone to know and were worried about having anyone over to their home, especially their grandchildren. We can’t begin to imagine the stress our Dad was living with then and now, not knowing what is to come.

The State Health Department was in charge of investigating the outbreak, and we waited patiently for their findings. In December of 2013, they concluded that the exact method of transmission was not identifiable and suggested that it could be associated with phlebotomy, podiatry, or nail care. We found this unacceptable!

One night, Jan was searching the internet for information on Hepatitis C and came across the HONOReform website. She emailed a short message explaining the situation and within 20 minutes received a phone call from Steve Langan.

No one in our community was paying attention to what happened at ManorCare, so with guidance from HONOReform, we decided to let the public know about the outbreak. It took great courage for both of our parents to let us take their story to the media in hopes of getting some answers. With Steve and Evelyn’s help, we were able to get our local news to televise a series of short features about the outbreak.

We wish Dad could start the oral medications he needs to combat the infection, hoping that it would help with his fatigue and weakness. He was denied coverage of the medications by the Veterans Administration and cannot afford them otherwise. For the 12-week regime of two pills a day, the cost is $160,000.

Mom and Dad are still taking things day-by-day. A support group for the victims and their family members has slowly been forming, which will hopefully make the task ahead easier – because we will continue to fight for answers. Our parents, along with other victims and their families, are owed at least that much.

Simply put, these 44 victims deserve an explanation. They should not be forgotten.

Meeting with patients in North Dakota

April 21, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

Steve Langan, director of HONOReform, is meeting with people affected by the North Dakota outbreak today

We send our best wishes in a special way today to our friends in Minot, North Dakota. Minot is the location of a healthcare-assoicated outbreak of Hepatitis C in which 44 residents of a nursing home were infected. Public health officials continue to investigate, but the exact cause is a mystery at this time. We send our best wishes for the good health and comfort for all the victims and their families.

I well remember those days of questions and confusion. When I found out I had Hepatitis C in early 2002, my husband and I were so stigmatized by the diagnosis that we told no one. We were alone in our worry and puzzlement. It wasn’t until several years later, after the public health investigation and discovery of facts through litigation, that we understood the cause and magnitude of the Nebraska Hepatitis C outbreak. The community was shocked that 99 people had been infected through re-use of syringes during chemotherapy at our local oncology clinic.

Once I learned that we had contracted this deadly disease through healthcare services, I let go of my feelings of stigma. Having Hepatitis C caused many difficult emotions, but shame was not one of them. I was frightened, confused and angry. I mourned the loss of good health, peace of mind and confidence in our healthcare system. I was overwhelmed with the amount of new information I had to process and the decisions I had to make regarding my health, my family’s welfare, my finances, and possible legal recourse.

Members of our community hosted several information sessions to address these questions. Some of us formed an informal support group. We learned to cope in the years following the Nebraska outbreak. I believe that the people of the North Dakota outbreak will as well. And we want to help you learn to cope.

At HONOReform, our primary aim is the elimination of outbreaks caused by lack of adherence to national injection safety standards. But, despite robust national awareness and advocacy for injection safety, outbreaks continue to occur. We offer our support to the people who are affected by outbreaks. We are glad for the opportunity—which is a privilege and at the center of our mission—to help support patients and communities as they learn to cope with the many consequences of an outbreak.

Steve Langan, executive director of HONOReform, is in Minot today, Monday, April 21. He would like to meet with Hepatitis C outbreak victims and family members to determine their needs and goals – and to see how HONOReform can help.

He will be meeting with victims/family members at the Hyatt House, which is located in north Minot at the junction of the 83 Bypass & 21st Avenue NW (2301 Landmark Drive). Steve will be available from 11-1 and 4-6 in the Hyatt’s gathering room (take a right after you enter the building and it is just a few steps down the hall). For those who cannot see Steve at Hyatt House, it is possible to schedule an appointment for him to come to them (between 1 and 4 pm and after 6 pm). Steve’s direct phone number is 402.659.6343 and his email address is steve@www.HONOReform.org. We encourage everyone to contact him anytime.

HONOReform – What we do

March 24, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

It is our pleasure to share with our many friends, colleagues and donors our 2013 annual report. It it available in a tri-fold brochure, and we would be happy to send it to you. We encourage you to distribute this information to your colleagues, and we welcome the opportunity to continue to support the need for safe injection practices throughout the country during 2014. Thank you for doing your part to help protect patients. Please call on us anytime.

HONOReform is the only national advocay organization dedicated to protecting patients through safeguarding the medical injection process.

Our Current Mission and Vision

HONOReform is the only national advocacy organization dedicated to protecting patients through safeguarding the medical injection process. Our vision is a nation in which health care providers always follow fundamental injection safety practices that are designed to protect all patients each and every time they receive an injection.

Expansion of our Mission in 2014

Starting in 2013, Evelyn McKnight of HONOReform encouraged all stakeholders to join her to help safeguard the entire spectrum of the medical injection process—from manufacturing to disposal. This year, Evelyn encourages healthcare workers to please “speak up if you see a colleague not using safe injection practices.” read more »

A giant step forward by Lauren Lollini

January 27, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

It has been almost five years since many of my fellow Coloradoans and I were wondering if we would be okay, if we would live. I had learned of my hepatitis C diagnosis months earlier than the others, as I was symptomatic, most of the victims were not. I kept asking how this could happen to me, all the while fearing that it wasn’t just me suffering. I feared for my future. I feared for the future of my daughter, Lucy, who was just one year old. A few months later, in July 2009, we learned that Kristen Parker, one of three known drug diverters in recent years to infect patients, had been the source of this deadly disease. Thousands of letters went out to patients who may have come into contact with Kristen and therefore put into harms way.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, I was following in the very brave footsteps of Evelyn McKnight and HONOReform. So with the support of some vital people, I tried to make a difference. I could not stay silent. I spoke to media and told my story and the story of the outbreak. I tried to put a name and a face to this tragedy, as some of the victims were too ill to speak out for themselves. Soon some Colorado lawmakers approached me to work with them to help make some real changes. And we did! I am proud of the two bills that were passed in 2010 HB 1414, concerning the reporting Identity in Injectable Drug Diversion (Benefield/Foster) http://tornado.state.co.us/gov_dir/leg_dir/olls/sl2010a/sl_338.htm and
HB 1415, Sunrise Surgical Tech Registration (Gagliardi/Morse) http://tornado.state.co.us/gov_dir/leg_dir/olls/sl2010a/sl_339.htm.
read more »

Seeing for ourselves how safety is engineered into medical injections

January 20, 2014

Evelyn McKnight and Lauren Lollini

BD hosted HONOReform and reporter Matthew Hanson for a plant tour

BD hosted HONOReform and reporter Matthew Hansen for a plant tour

What a great way to end the week!

Steve Langan and Matthew Hansen, features writer for the Omaha World-Herald, picked me up at my house on Friday morning, and we drove to a meeting at the BD (Becton, Dickinson and Co.) plant in Columbus. It’s one of two BD plants in Columbus. There are two others in the state, one in Broken Bow and another in Holdrege.

Congressman Jeff Fortenberry, a longtime supporter of injection safety whose district now also includes the Columbus area, was at the meeting. He met with our BD colleagues and the HONOReform team, and then he led a town hall meeting for BD employees.

I value Congressman Fortenberry’s straightforward, genuine approach to governing. read more »

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