Baby unit acts to end panic on killer bug

Anxious mothers are being assured it is safe to give birth at Wellington Hospital though three babies have died after being infected with a rogue bug in its neonatal intensive care unit.

Hospital clinicians and local midwives yesterday admitted there was a level of panic among expectant parents after the hospital said on Wednesday that the deaths were linked to the aggressive bacteria.

One woman is planning to have a home birth after telling her midwife she did not want to go anywhere near Wellington Hospital.

Neonatal consultant Dr Michael Hewson said his biggest concern was the worry in the community.

He said the hospital, midwives and Plunketline had been answering calls for much of the day.

But parents should remember that well babies would not come into contact with the bacteria at the hospital, he said. Tests showed it had not been found anywhere outside the neonatal intensive care unit.

"It is a problem and a serious problem for the babies in the neonatal unit," Dr Hewson told the Weekend Herald.

"But it's not in the delivery suite, postnatal wards or children's ward."

He said the risk for new premature baby admissions was "extremely" low, because they would not come into contact with any of the eight babies in the unit who remain infected.

Those babies had been isolated and were responding well to treatment.

Thirty-seven babies and 15 staff have been infected with the strain since late last year. Six nurses remain off work.

The hospital said on Wednesday that a strict isolation regime and infection control measures were being used to try to wipe out the germ.

Microbiologist Dr Mark Jones said that was prompted by confirmation that a third baby had died from the rogue strain, about 10 days ago. The public announcement was made after all parents had been contacted.

Dr Hewson said Wellington Hospital was only accepting babies into its neonatal unit from the local area. Babies from the lower North Island and upper South Island who would normally be treated at Wellington would be sent to other units.

Dr Jones said the infection control measures put in place after the strain was detected some months ago were intensive, and had been effective in stopping other more usual infections.

But the new bug had evaded those procedures, and even stricter controls were needed to wipe it out.

One Wellington midwife, who asked not to be named, said there was "a bit of panic out there".

BORN EARLY

* The three babies who died, in January, March and April developed blood poisoning after being infected with an aggressive and unique strain of Staphylococcus Aureus.

* Like the other babies in Wellington Hospital's neonatal unit, they were born early - at about 24 to 27 weeks - and had low levels of immunity, making them at higher risk of contracting a fatal infection.