Burnaby Hospital's aging building is a key factor in the ongoing problem with high rates of infection, and a new building will ultimately be necessary on the site.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Health and the Fraser Health Authority will be doing everything they can to tackle the problem.
That was the message from Health Minister Mike de Jong during a visit to the hospital this week.
Last week, a letter written by several of the hospital's head doctors to the Fraser Health Authority about the problem was made public by NDP leader Adrian Dix.
In it, the doctors said that the hospital had a persistent problem with outbreaks of Clostridium difficile - a highly infectious bacteria that causes diarrhea, nausea and dehydration - among patients at a rate that topped regional or national averages.
Altogether, they claimed that 84 patients with C. difficile had died between 2009 and mid-2011, and another 473 patients had contracted the infection while at the hospital. Additionally, two units were closed between July and December for nine and 12 days each.
The letter, written by Dr. Shane Kirby - the hospital's general pathologist and the chair of the infection control committee - was co-signed by the heads of several of the hospital's departments, including surgery, internal medicine and emergency.
In it, Kirby writes that the response to the problem has been "ineffectual" and that the situation is bad enough to be considered medical negligence.
The doctors offered up a list of recommendations to help tackle the problem.
In the list of issues identified in the letter as root causes of the problem, the building itself is the first item identified: "Aged hospital infrastructure, with insufficient numbers and inadequate localization of sinks."
The Vancouver Sun reported yesterday that de Jong highlighted that concern during a visit to the hospital, telling reporters during a press conference that it's more difficult to halt the spread of an infection when patients are sharing facilities.
"If you have four patients in a room as opposed to one patient or two patients, they're sharing the same bathroom. That is a challenge," he said in the Sun.
He also noted that newer facilities have lower rates of C. difficile than older ones.
"So ultimately the redesign, the redevelopment of this campus, is going to be necessary."
A new facility is still years away, however.
"In the meantime we have to make sure that infection rates continue to drop."
The health authority has said they're implementing recommendations made by an infectious disease expert after a recent external review, which include improved cleaning procedures and recommendations around isolating infected patients.
Roy Thorpe-Dorward, spokesman for Fraser Health, told the NOW yesterday that they will also be improving communication with the public and people visiting the hospital.
"We're certainly hearing that people want more transparency," he said. "That's a message we're hearing and we're responding to quickly."
Up till now, the authority has posted unit closure and outbreak notices on specific units. However, Thorpe-Dorward says they'll be expanding the notices, so that anyone coming into the hospital can be made aware that a specific unit has had an issue.
"People want to know there's been cases in the hospital," he said.
That will be rolling out in the coming days at all hospitals in the health region, which runs from Burnaby to Boston Bar, covering New Westminster, Langley, Surrey, Maple Ridge and Abbotsford.
Additionally, more information about C. difficile and other major infections and details about limiting their spread will be posted in hospitals.
C. difficile is not typically contracted by people with otherwise healthy immune systems or who have not been on antibiotics for extended periods. Those most at risk include people age 65 and older, those with underlying diseases and weakened immune systems, patients in intensive care, those with prolonged hospital stays and people who have a history of antibiotic usage.
