Four local hospitals are using an ultraviolet light machine as a tool to help reduce the transmission of an intestinal infection called Clostridium Difficile also known as C-Diff.
Unity, Strong Memorial, Highland and Rochester General Hospitals each received two of the machines. Each one stands approximately five feet ten inches tall with twenty U-V bulbs running the length of it.
Doctor Alexandra Yamshchikov says using ultraviolet lights in disinfection frequently touched surfaces is novel, "And the way that it works is that there's a germicidal wave length of UV that is harmful to the bacteria and causes damage to the bacterial DNA and kills it. So, it's a targeted intervention for that and we also think that it’s active against the spore form of the bacteria, which is the most difficult to eradicate."
It's one of those methods the partnership is using, in addition to other cleaning techniques to cut down the number of C-Diff infection cases in the area.
The two year pilot will be tested at all four hospitals on floors that have a higher likelihood of c-diff cases. Rooms would be randomly selected.
The eight UV light machines were donated through the John and Jayne Summers Foundation. They each cost more than $74,000.