Our Point of View
August 26, 2008
Kaiser Permanente Takes Steps to Protect Those Who May Have Been Exposed to TB in San Francisco
On August 18, we were notified by public health officials that a part-time health care worker in the maternity unit at Kaiser Permanente San Francisco Medical Center had developed active tuberculosis (TB). We immediately contacted all appropriate county and state health agencies. Since that time our infectious disease physicians have been working closely with the San Francisco Department of Public Health on a plan to identify, notify and screen anyone who may have been in contact with this individual.
For more information about tuberculosis, how it is spread, who is at risk, symptoms, how it is treated and other questions, please read this content in kaiserpermanente.org.
We regret the worry and inconvenience this situation may cause for our patients and employees. We are moving quickly to provide testing, and if necessary, any treatment needed to those who may have been exposed to this very treatable strain of TB. Fortunately, most people exposed to someone with active TB do not contract the disease, and those who do can be treated and cured. People who are at risk of getting the disease, but are not yet sick, can take medicine that will prevent them from developing TB.
We have identified all patients who need to be notified, and beginning this morning, those patients are being contacted personally by their physician by phone, to explain the situation, answer questions and to schedule appointments for TB testing.
There is an extremely low risk of patients contracting TB as a result of this individual case, but we are being vigilant in our effort to protect all who have been exposed. We are committed to reducing the risk to the lowest level possible, so we are using a broader time period than we believe the employee was likely to be contagious. Therefore, we will be contacting every patient on the unit during the employee's shifts, along with affected family members and visitors.
If you are a Kaiser Permanente member and you have not been contacted, but have concerns, we encourage you to contact your primary care physician or call Kaiser Permanente at 1-800-464-4000.
Kaiser Permanente has an aggressive TB testing program for all of our employees. We have confirmed the San Francisco Medical Center followed all of the appropriate preventive screening procedures when hiring this employee, who stopped working on August 10, and is no longer with the organization. We are continuing to investigate this matter. We do not tolerate any employee who puts the health of patients or co-workers at risk.
This is a highly unusual situation for us at Kaiser Permanente, and we take it very seriously. We are fortunate that our unique integrated system of hospitals, clinics, and physicians – and our electronic medical record system – enables us to quickly identify, track, and communicate with our members in order to connect them quickly with their personal physician to receive testing and care.
Tuberculosis is a significant public health issue and the number of tuberculosis cases is increasing worldwide. In the U.S., progress towards reducing the rate of TB cases has slowed significantly. It is also a highly treatable condition, usually with an extended course of antibiotics.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has additional information on TB.
Updated 08/28/08