  
March 24, 2009
Unsterilized Equipment Puts Thousands of Miami Veterans at Risk for HIV
A Miami Veterans Affairs hospital has notified thousands of patients that they may have been exposed to HIV after undergoing colonoscopies performed with unsterilized equipment, Fox News reports.
According to the article, the hospital insists that there was a minimal risk of infection because the improperly cleaned tubing did not make contact with patients. The VA contacted about 3,260 veterans who had the procedure between May 2004 and March 12 of this year and advised them to get tested for HIV, hepatitis and other illnesses. This is the second recent announcement of mistakes during colonoscopies at VA facilities. A similar incident occurred at a Murfreesboro, Tennessee, clinic last month.
“That, somehow, these standard protocols were not followed will undoubtedly leave our veterans with serious misgivings about our VA system,” said U.S. Representative Kendrick Meek (D–Fla.).
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Dean Monroe, , 2009-03-28 19:48:13
I feel very uncomfortable about the unsterilized equipment used at the VA hospitals. It makes all of us with compromised immune systems feel more at risk than ever. HIV is but one of the hundreds of diseases we could catch in that situation.
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