Legionnaires' disease is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia caused by the bacterium Legionella Pneumophila. Its symptoms include high fever, chills, headache and muscle pain, with many patients also experiencing difficulty breathing. Though many who contract the disease may experience only flu-like symptoms, the disease is particularly dangerous to 'at risk' groups including the elderly and those with suppressed immune systems or some other form of underlying disease.
According to the Health and Safety Executive statistics, on average there are approximately 200-250 reported cases of Legionnaires' disease each year in the UK, with a fatality rate somewhere in the region of 12 per cent. While these figures may be concerning enough in themselves, there is evidence to suggest that the total number of cases each year may be generally underestimated, with many cases going unreported, or where no source of infection can be traced.
While the Legionnaires' disease is completely preventable, lack of awareness and training, inadequate control measures and management failures have all contributed to the deaths we regularly see reported in the news.
Only in July of this year for example, an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease killed one patient in Stoke-on-Trent, with a further 19 people found to have contracted the disease. This follows on from a number of other widely publicised cases, including one outbreak that affected 61 people in Edinburgh as recently as June.
With the threat of Legionella a very real concern across the UK, there is mounting pressure for dental practices and businesses to demonstrate documented compliance evidence in line with HTM 04-01 guidance, the HSE Approved Code of Practice for Control of Legionella in Water Systems, and COSHH regulations.
If you're unsure of your practice's current risk status, we at dbg recommend our bespoke LCA-Accredited Legionella Risk Assessment package. This service is a full and comprehensive assessment of the practice in line with ACOP L8, HTM 04-01 and HTM 01-05, and includes:
- A full survey of domestic water services and all dental equipment used in the practice including ultra violet systems, reverse osmosis and disinfection units.
- Inspection of all maintenance records.
- Review of all commissioning, decommissioning, cleaning and disinfection procedures.
- A standard risk assessment.
- Schematic drawings.
- Access to all survey information via the internet.
To make sure your practice meets all its legal requirements dbg will supply you with a Euro Environmental L8 Log Book which includes a self-monitoring pack for weekly flushing and monthly temperature testing.
Another highly popular Legionella package is dbg's COSHH & Legionella Awareness training course, which has been designed to give you and your team members the knowledge and understanding required to minimise Legionella risks in your practice.
All the training courses dbg provide are practical and highly relevant to the practice. Delegates also find them flexible. dbg aims to provide training on-site where possible, at a time convenient to the practice team. This means a practice doesn't have to suffer as a result of training and you can all 'earn while you learn'.
References available on request.