Security Against Staph
How to watch for and clean up after a staph infection outbreak

By Dan Shortridge

Attention rose to a fever pitch last fall about the dangers of potentially life-threatening infections from a drug-resistant bacteria known as Staphylococcus aureus, or staph, with widespread media reports of cases spread through athletic programs and in locker rooms.

Experts caution that while staph infections can be controlled through simple steps, those measures require constant vigilance and wide-ranging educational efforts among the user population.

The simplest defense against such infections includes following your mother’s advice: Wash your hands and body.

“Very simply put, common-sense cleaning, disinfecting and hand hygiene save people’s lives,” says Nancy Bock of the Soap and Detergent Association, a manufacturers’ trade group.

”Even if a contaminated surface is touched, the germ involved can be removed through simple hand-washing,” says Rachel Gorwitz, a medical epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

And people with cuts or other infections should also take careful precautions, she says.

“Covering infections will greatly reduce the risk of surfaces becoming contaminated with staph, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA),” Gorwitz says.

One nonprofit organization, NSF International, which creates standards and certifies food, water and consumer products, has launched an educational effort for children, the Scrub Club, featuring a Web site with “soaper-heroes” to teach hand-washing.

The site includes interactive games, music, downloadable activities and educational materials for teachers and parents.

“By teaching children the importance of proper hand-washing with the help of the Scrub Club, we can make a difference in preventing the spread of MRSA and other serious infections,” says company Vice President William Fisher.

Lindsey Lesher, who coordinates MRSA surveillance for the state of Minnesota, says the state health agency has developed educational materials for the general public, schools, athletes and coaches. “The important message is that MRSA is preventable through basic measures such as covering wounds and washing hands,” she says.