South Nassau Community Hospitals in Oceanside, N.Y., has alerted 4,247 patients of a risk of hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV contamination due to potentially improper use of insulin pens in the hospital, according to a report from Long Island Newsday.
While there is no official report of any insulin pens, which are meant for use with a single patient, being used with multiple patients, the hospital has recommended thousands of patients get tested for the three diseases after a SNCH nurse was overheard saying reusing insulin pen reservoirs on multiple patients was an acceptable practice. Insulin pens are single use because blood from one patient may be taken into the pen's reservoir after the injection, posing a risk of blood-borne pathogen transfer to other patients if reused, according to the report.
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While the hospital reports risk of infection is minimal, it has filed a report with the New York Department of Health and has banned the use of insulin pens in favor of single-use patient vials, according to the report.
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