$300K grant awarded to study airborne MRSA in health care settings

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation has awarded a $300,000 grant to the University of Cincinnati to study airborne MRSA to better protect health care workers.

Most infections of MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, occur in people who have been in hospitals, making it an especially strong risk for those working in health care settings.

Businessinsurance.com reported that researchers will be studying if MRSA, a type of staph bacteria, is present in the air in hospitals and the airborne transmission rate.

Experts say while MRSA has traditionally been transmitted through person-to-person contact, and through contact with contaminated surfaces, emerging evidence shows the presence of airborne MRSA in hospital settings. It poses a new risk to patients and health care workers.

So, researchers from UC's division of environmental and industrial hygiene in the Department of Environmental and Public Health Sciences at the College of Medicine will conduct laboratory and field work at UC Medical Center.

If live MRSA is discovered in the air, researchers will recommend disinfecting the air and offer other recommendations to further enhance workplace safety.

Click here to read the UC News report on the grant and the research.

Featured image at top: Gloved hand holding Petri dish with bacteria growing. Photo/Provided.