Disinfectant Delivery to Tanzanian Hospital Keeps Patients and Doctors Healthy

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Nurse Zephrine Paul uses CIDEX® and trays to sterilizeendoscopy instruments.. A recent shipment of CIDEX® Activated Dialdehyde Solution and instrument sterilization trays to Bugando Medical Centre in Tanzania has made a crucial difference to both health workers and patients alike. Because of high costs, the hospital often faces shortages of disinfectant - a product necessary for providing quality care to patients and reducing the risk of infection from untreated medical devices. The shipment of the CIDEX® solution and the disinfection trays is the first in a three-year commitment from Advanced Sterilization Products, a Johnson & Johnson company. Now the hospital's endoscopy unit can perform internal testing on double the number of patients each week: 40 to 55 people are helped compared to just 25 patients per week before the shipment. The increased treatment capacity makes a big difference for patients like Pilly Limanya, a 40-year-old teacher who suffered from abdominal pain. Pilly was able to undergo diagnostic testing a full month earlier, and after being diagnosed, she received treatment for her pain and returned happily to work. "This CIDEX is very important to our unit," said Dr. Mehta, head of the endoscopy unit at Bugando Medical Centre. "Thanks to this donation, we can diagnose more patients than before." The CIDEX shipment is part of AmeriCares Health Worker Safety Initiative, a program that aims to protect nearly 2,000 of Bugando's staff members and students from infection and other workplace hazards. The initiative plays a key role in protecting patients as well, by reducing the spread of infection. Since 2008, the program has provided vaccinations, trainings, safety supplies and other vital resources to the 900-bed teaching hospital located in Mwanza, Tanzania, serving more than 14 million people.