Estimated read time: Less than a minute
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — State health officials have ordered Rhode Island Hospital to retrain its emergency department staff on infection control after they botched the handling of a potential measles case.
The state Health Department investigated the Feb. 28 incident and found that hospital staff violated infection control policies when they allowed a patient with measles symptoms to sit in a public waiting area for more than two hours. Health officials say the patient was wearing a mask, but should have confined in a private room under hospital policy.
Tests later showed the person did not have measles, which is highly contagious.
Health Director Michael Fine says the hospital won't be fined for the incident.
Hospital officials say they take patient safety seriously and will re-educate staff about the hospital's comprehensive infection control policies.
Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
