Gert van der Hoek
In Memoriam - Editor, Senior Moderator
The patient died too.
Doctor dies of CCHF after accidental needle prick
23 September 2012 / TODAY'S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
A doctor working at Samsun's Ondokuz Mayıs University Hospital died on Saturday after contracting Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) while treating a patient who was infected with the tick-borne virus.
Two weeks ago, a patient, Aslan Y., was admitted to Havza State Hospital with diarrhea, weakness and fever due to a tick bite. When his condition worsened he was taken to Ondokuz Mayıs University Hospital, where he was found to be suffering from CCHF, which is transmitted by tick bites and can be fatal.
A 27-year-old doctor involved in Aslan Y.'s treatment became infected with the virus after coming into contact with a tainted needle. Dr. Mustafa Bilgiç accidentally dropped the instrument and then pricked himself when he attempted to retrieve it from the floor. The doctor, who reportedly had been married for just a year, fell into a coma and died six days later in intensive care.
The patient also died two days after Bilgiç was infected with the virus.
Expressing his condolences to the family of Bilgiç, the deputy dean of the Ondokuz Mayıs University School of Medicine, Professor Faruk Bağırıcı, pointed to the difficult working conditions doctors are faced with.
A similar incident happened in the same hospital three years ago when a nurse, Kübra Kazım, accidentally pricked her hand with the needle while collecting blood from a patient infected with the same virus.
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Doctor dies of CCHF after accidental needle prick
23 September 2012 / TODAY'S ZAMAN, İSTANBUL
A doctor working at Samsun's Ondokuz Mayıs University Hospital died on Saturday after contracting Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) while treating a patient who was infected with the tick-borne virus.
Two weeks ago, a patient, Aslan Y., was admitted to Havza State Hospital with diarrhea, weakness and fever due to a tick bite. When his condition worsened he was taken to Ondokuz Mayıs University Hospital, where he was found to be suffering from CCHF, which is transmitted by tick bites and can be fatal.
A 27-year-old doctor involved in Aslan Y.'s treatment became infected with the virus after coming into contact with a tainted needle. Dr. Mustafa Bilgiç accidentally dropped the instrument and then pricked himself when he attempted to retrieve it from the floor. The doctor, who reportedly had been married for just a year, fell into a coma and died six days later in intensive care.
The patient also died two days after Bilgiç was infected with the virus.
Expressing his condolences to the family of Bilgiç, the deputy dean of the Ondokuz Mayıs University School of Medicine, Professor Faruk Bağırıcı, pointed to the difficult working conditions doctors are faced with.
A similar incident happened in the same hospital three years ago when a nurse, Kübra Kazım, accidentally pricked her hand with the needle while collecting blood from a patient infected with the same virus.
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