Santa Clara County Grand Jury
• 2014-2015
2014-2015 Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury Report Santa Clara County Crime Lab Legionella Bacteria – Still Cannot
⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 5 findings
F1
The Crime Lab management took proactive action to protect their employees and the public. The initial step of placing warning signs at water drinking fountains and sinks, while also providing bottled water for personal use, has been instrumental in avoiding anyone contracting Legionnaire’s Disease.
Related Recommendations (1)
R1
The establishment of an HACCP team
F2
The Legionella Pneumophila Bacterium in the plumbing system of the Crime Lab can be controlled within acceptable levels.
Related Recommendations (3)
R2
Critical control points
R2A
The County should ensure that FAF continues with the use of the installed chlorine Injection System to control the growth of water borne bacteria at the Crime Lab.
R2B
The County should ensure that FAF maintains a schedule of testing as specified in the “Permit for chlorine Injection System Installation” permit plan and as documented within the HACCP plan to ensure that the residual bacterial levels in the potable water do not exceed safety standards.
F3
The County did not provide timely notification, information, education, and training regarding Legionella Bacteria found in the water of the Crime Lab to their employees and contractors who regularly or occasionally perform work in the Crime Lab building.
Related Recommendations (1)
R3
The County should ensure that all Crime Lab and Facilities and Fleet employees, contractors and others who frequent or visit the Crime Lab are given timely notification, updates, and training regarding the status of the Legionella Bacteria in the water.
F4
The Crime Lab warning signs regarding Legionella Bacteria posted at water drinking fountains, sinks, and faucets used by employees and the public are only in English.
Related Recommendations (1)
R4
The County should ensure that the Crime Lab’s Legionella Bacteria warning signs on the water drinking fountains, sinks, and faucets used by employees and the public are provided in languages which are prevalent in Santa Clara County such as, Spanish, Chinese, and Vietnamese.
F5
The Crime Lab does not have warning signs regarding the presence of Legionella Bacteria posted at all of the water drinking fountains, sinks, and faucets.
Related Recommendations (1)
R5
The County should ensure that the Crime Lab’s Legionella Bacteria warning signs are posted and remain posted in all appropriate locations until such time that the employees and public may be assured the danger posed by Legionella Bacteria in the potable water system of the Crime Lab is controlled. Appendix A
Additional Recommendations 7
These recommendations are not explicitly linked to specific findings.
-
R6Record keeping and documentation
-
R7Verification and validation The recommended steps are:11
-
R8Establish critical limits
-
R9Establish a system to monitor critical control points
-
R10Establish corrective actions
-
R11Validate/verify HACCP plan
-
R12Establish documentation and record keeping The application of HACCP to public water supplies was first proposed in 1994 and has been successfully implemented by many countries including Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Finland, Italy, South Africa, and the United Kingdom. Safety programs, based on the seven principals of HACCP, were developed by the World Health Organization and have been proven effective in preventing waterborne disease associated with 10 Additional detail on these principles can be found in
Conclusions 6
-
CL1 Page 14The Crime Lab management took proactive action to protect their employees and the public. The initial step of placing warning signs at water drinking fountains and sinks, while also providing bottled water for personal use, has been instrumental in avoiding anyone contracting Legionnaire’s Disease.
-
CL2 Page 14The Legionella Pneumophila Bacterium in the plumbing system of the Crime Lab can be controlled within acceptable levels.
-
CL3 Page 14The County did not provide timely notification, information, education, and training regarding Legionella Bacteria found in the water of the Crime Lab to their employees and contractors who regularly or occasionally perform work in the Crime Lab building.
-
CL4 Page 15The Crime Lab warning signs regarding Legionella Bacteria posted at water drinking fountains, sinks, and faucets used by employees and the public are only in English.
-
CL5 Page 15The Crime Lab does not have warning signs regarding the presence of Legionella Bacteria posted at all of the water drinking fountains, sinks, and faucets.
-
CL6 Page 162014. h. Phigenics Contract and Service Agreement dated August 18, 2014. i. Santa Clara County Crime Lab Validation Criteria Table and Verification Schedule (two pages). j. Santa Clara County Crime Lab Validation Criteria Table and Verification Schedule (two pages). Internet articles and reports reviewed included: a. American Institute of Architects. AAJ News. December, 2008, Santa Clara County Crime Lab. www.aia.org/practicing/groups/kc/aias077277. b. Mayo Clinic Legionnaires ’ disease Prevention –Disease and Conditions. By Mayo Clinic Staff www.mayoclinic.org/search/search-results?q=legionnairesdisease c. Mercury News, San Jose, California. “Bacteria That Causes legionnaires’ Disease Found In Santa Clara County Crime Lab” , Tracey Kaplan, 11/14/2013. [email protected]. d. Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport and the Ministry of Housing Where the Major Outbreak of Legionnaires Occurred in March, 1999. 42 Questions Answered and Categorized www.legionnairesdisease.nl/about-legionnaires’disease e. Occupational Safety and Heath Administration (OSHA) We Can Help Series. Section I: What Is Legionnaires’’ Disease?, Section II: What Water Systems In the Workplace Are Potential Sources of Legionnaires’ Disease?, Section III :How to Determine if a Workplace is Experiencing an Outbreak, Section IV: What Actions Are Required When An Outbreak Has Been Confirmed? http://www.osha.gov/dts/osta/otm/legionnaires/index.html. f. “About Us”. Advertising Information and Description of Services about Phigenics. Includes Staffing and products available. www.phigenics.com. g. San Diego County Health and Human Services Agency. Guidelines to detect and report diseases including Legionnaires’ Disease. Who has the right to do so? What happens if there is a failure to report the disease? http://www.sandiegocounty.gov. h. San Mateo Medical Center. Quick Links. Health and Wellness Issues. Legionnaires Disease. www.sanmateomedicalcenter.org/Healthlibrary. i. Department of Veterans Affairs, Office of Inspector General. Report No. 13- 00994-180. Healthcare Inspection Legionnaires’ disease at the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. April 23, 2013. Washington, D.C. Follow up of Report Serial No. 113-1, US House of Representative One Hundred Thirteenth Congress, Feb. 5, 2013. Hearing of Legionnaires ‘Disease in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. www.va.gov/org. j. “Analyzing VA’s Actions To Prevent Legionnaires’ Disease In Pittsburg”. Hearing Before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigation of the Committee on Veteran’s Affairs. U.S. House of Representatives. One Hundred Thirteenth Congress. First Session. Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2013. www. gov/fdsys/pkg/cHRG-113hhrg7863/mods.xml. k. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Legionnaires ’ disease Sections(1: Background, 2: Epidemiology, 3:Discovery of Legionella Pneumophila Also: Advanced Characteristics, Philadelphia Outbreak, Control, Questions Asked en.wikipedia.org/wiki/legionnaires’disease_search_results.
Agency Responses 1
Government agencies' official responses to this report's findings and recommendations. Click on a response to see the structured breakdown.
No Responses Found 1
Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.
Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors
Elected County Office