Hepatitis Scare at Hospital in Westchester

Northern Westchester Hospital in New York is in the process of telling almost 3,000 patients of possible exposure to hepatitis C because of revelations that a former surgical tech there has transmitted the virus to patients in Colorado, according to officials.

Kristen Diane Parker worked as a surgical technician at Northern Westchester Hospital from October 8, 2007, to February 28, 2008. She later went to work in Colorado, where authorities have accused her of self-injected pain meds using syringes that she later filled and replaced, possibly exposing patients to infection, officials said.

At least 10 patients in Colorado may have contracted hep C from Parker. So far, there is no word if any patients at NWH contracted the virus from her. In fact, health officials do not know if Parker was even infected when she worked in Westchester.

The New York Department of Health is recommending that patients who had surgery at NWH between October 8, 2007, and February 28, 2008, be tested for hepatitis C. Patients should call 914-666-1902 for information.

HEPATITIS C: Q&A WITH DR. MANNY ALVAREZ

What is Hepatitis C?

Hepatitis C is a viral infection, a type of hepatitis, it mostly affects the liver. It's one of the leading causes of liver failure; it's one of the leading causes for individuals getting liver transplants. So this is a very infectious type of hepatitis, and it is very deadly for a lot of people.

What are the symptoms of Hep C?

Typically it's a little bit silent in the beginning, if you get infected there's an incubation period, but after a time when your liver begins to fail you get inflammation, you get jaundice, which is yellowing of the skin, it affects your overall metabolism, your energy. So at the beginning, people feel fine, but indeed as this virus begins to take over, then you have problems.

What are the other ways Hep C can be transmitted?

It's mostly transmitted via blood transfusions, and things of this sort. There needs to be a direct contact; contaminated needle is a perfect example, and of course you see this in individuals who have drug abuse. So direct contact is necessary in order for the virus to penetrate the body and make things worse.

What's the treatment for Hep C? Is there a cure?

No, there's no cure. That's the whole key -- there's really no cure. When you get hepatitis C there are some treatments, which are very delicate, in order to keep the virus from reproducing and affecting the liver, but at the end of the day this is a chronic medical problem. A lot of times hepatitis C can go into sort of a remission, but it's a type of disease that needs to be monitored throughout your life.

Now in this particular case, how likely was it that patients were affected?

Anytime you have the accusation that a health care worker intentionally infected a patient, especially with something like hepatitis C, you have to pause, because health care workers are in direct contact with patients and it's very easy to have this type of infestation grow and affect a lot of people. It's very concerning. I'm a little surprised because most health workers usually get screened for hepatitis B, hepatitis C. And especially someone who was in direct contact with patients, usually you are very careful about infection control, so I'm very surprised in that, if I read the story correctly, that this individual has traveled through different states, has worked for many, many months in hospitals and nobody has bothered to identify her as a carrier of hepatitis C.

What should concerned people do?

You've got to get tested. If you get notified that you were exposed to this particular individual, or if you happened to be admitted to that hospital within that duration of time which that individual worked, or if you get a letter from the health department or the hospital itself, you've got to tested. It's a simple blood test, it's not complicated at all, and they'll tell you exactly what kind of protocols they need to do so far as to monitoring for a while, but you've got to get tested, because that's the first thing.

>CDC: VIRAL HEPATITIS