Letter to Erica Jeffries, Director of the Illinois Department of Veteran Affairs - Legionnaires' Disease Outbreak at Illinois Veterans' Home
Letter
Dear Director Jeffries:
I am writing to you about the Legionnaires' disease outbreak at Illinois Veterans' Home (IVH) Quincy first reported in early August 2015. The outbreak resulted in more than 50 cases of legionellosis among IVH Quincy residents and staff, as well as the death of 12 residents. The recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Epi-Aid 2015-037 Trip Report identified a number of highly concerning environmental and epidemiological factors and policies that led to the rapid onset of the outbreak at IVH Quincy, as well as a list of recommendations. I urge the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs to work with IVH Quincy to ensure the appropriate implementation of the CDC's recommendations and request a complete plan of action to ensure that IVH Quincy is better prepared in the future to prevent and mitigate such a deadly outbreak.
The CDC investigation identified "widespread colonization of the facility's potable water system and cooling tower with a highly pathogenic strain of Legionella and an at-risk population." The size of IVH Quincy and its aging infrastructure helped contribute to the outbreak. However, most concerning is that maintenance of systems and timeliness in the surveillance of infections were both lacking, and the facility did not have a comprehensive water management plan or Legionella prevention plan. I was also troubled by media reports in September 2015, which quoted you as stating that the facility needed "an increased amount of treatment in [its] water," and that staff were "not aware of the level vulnerability."
I urge you to work with IVH Quincy to ensure that the CDC recommendations are implemented swiftly as well as identify ways to prevent such an outbreak in the future. IVH Quincy has an obligation to provide a high quality of care to our veterans, and as this facility is owned, operated, and managed by the State of Illinois, I urge your office to consider a plan of action to uphold this obligation at IVH Quincy and Illinois Veterans' Homes across the State.
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