Carriage of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus among Healthcare Workers in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Methicillin-resistant S. aureus causes numerous illnesses, from relatively minor skin and soft tissue infections to potentially fatal systemic infections, are known to be caused by the multidrug-resistant bacterium. Methicillin resistance Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) mostly spread through contact between patients and healthcare workers. Screening healthcare professionals who have been exposed to MRSA could help stop the spread of the organism. Aim- Carriage of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus among health care workers in a tertiary care hospital. Objective- To detect Staphylococci from hand and nasal swab samples of health care workers (HCWs), to differentiate MRSA from isolated organism & to determine percentage of MRSA from different categories of HCWs. Methods: Two samples were collected from 198 Health care workers, including samples from anterior nares and web spaces of both hands. MRSA and Staphylococcus aureus strains were identified by standard operating procedure. Results: About 58(29.2%) were carriers of S. aureus and 20 (34.4%) were carriers of MRSA. Among the MRSA carriers, Nurses were 10 (50%) followed by doctors 5 (25%), Lab technicians were 4 (20%) & housekeeping staff 1(5%). Conclusions: Despite having infection control policies in place, the MRSA carriage rate was higher in the nasal than in the hand. This signifies the importance of periodic systematic screening of all HCWs and decolonization, which may help eliminate the burden of MRSA carrier status and the spread of infection in the healthcare setting.