AUBURN, Wash. — MultiCare Auburn Medical Center is notifying certain patients within a five-month period this year that they were exposed to tuberculosis.
The hospital said an employee at the hospital tested positive for the disease.
The patients who were exposed were treated in the hospital's family birth center. Employees who worked in the area were also exposed.
The period of when patients may have been exposed is April 22 to Sept. 30, according to Public Health – Seattle & King County.
MultiCare said the likelihood the disease was transmitted to patients and employees is low, as TB is not easily spread and requires prolonged exposure.
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The hospital said 27 adult patients will receive letters recommending they get tested. The families of 26 infants are also being told that their babies were exposed and testing is recommended.
MultiCare said it is providing all 53 patients with free TB testing and will help with next steps, which may include follow-up testing and treatment. Any visitors who spent more than eight hours with the affected patients in the birth center are also welcome to be tested.
MultiCare is alerting the babies’ pediatricians and recommending that their parents speak to their child’s doctor to determine the best next steps for monitoring for symptoms.
The hospital said patients who don’t receive notification letters this week do not need testing.
MultiCare called the exposure an “ isolated situation” and said the hospital is taking appropriate actions on behalf of patients.
“For MultiCare, there is no higher priority that the safety of our patients and employees,” said Dr. Arun Mathews, Chief Medical Officer at MultiCare Auburn Medical Center. “This situation is troubling to us, but we are committed to ensuring TB testing and care for those who need it.”
The hospital is also notifying 107 staff members who worked in the family birth center when the employee was on duty.
According to MultiCare:
Tuberculosis is caused by an airborne bacterium that typically impacts the lungs. Not everyone who is infected with TB bacteria becomes sick. TB is not transmitted by touching tables and other objects that an infected person touched.
Tuberculosis is often treatable through medication. Medical providers can use a skin or blood test to determine if the infection is present. In 2018, 93 new cases of TB were reported in King County, for an incidence of 4.2 cases per 100,000.
More information is available at multicare.org/safety-alert.
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