What is the management of a MRSA outbreak in an institution?
Experts differ and there is no single answer to this question. When an outbreak, however it is defined, does occur in an institution such as a healthcare facility, many individuals believe that it is appropriate to culture all individuals residing in that facility, be it an Intensive Care Unit, a ward, or some other healthcare facility unit simultaneously. It is not clear how this culturing should be accomplished. Some believe that a nasal culture of all individuals is appropriate. Others prefer an approach that takes into account the fact that individuals with MRSA colonization may be colonized at multiple sites including the skin. Healthcare workers are generally not included in this initial screening process, in part because the management of the colonized healthcare worker is problematic. It is customary to cohort individuals found to be positive during a patient colonization screen. It is less clear what to do when healthcare workers are included. It is certainly prudent to cultur
