Screening for the Detection of Methicillin. Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Carriers Admitted In Intensive Care Units: Ethical Considerations
Screening for the Detection of Methicillin. Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Carriers Admitted In Intensive Care Units: Ethical Considerations

Summary/Abstract: The high prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in Romania and the emergence of community acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus (CA-MRSA) highliths the need for special approaches for the prevention of MRSA transmission. These special approaches consist in performing a screening for the detection of the MRSA carriers in patients admitted in services where there are individuals with high risk of infection (with prosthetic devices, after surgery, severely ill). The screening includes nasopharyngeal culture followed by the isolation of the patiens until the result of culture, associated with measures of infection control. These interventions rise the following ethical considerations: the need for informed consent, limitation of personal liberty, consequences on individual rights, analysis of quality improvement characteristics of the activity in health care, identification of financial resources, publication of some specific results of the screening.

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