Paper To Be Presented At Caribbean Conference
A paper written by a Bermuda Department of Health staff member has been accepted for presentation at the 58th Annual Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA)/ Caribbean Health Research Council (CHRC) Scientific Conference.
The conference will take place in Barbados from May 2nd to 4th and there will be a special focus on ‘Child Health’. It is the largest health research conference in the English-speaking Caribbean with more than 200 delegates in attendance, made up of researchers, policy makers and healthcare providers.
The Department of Health paper is called Outbreak of Staphylococcal Food Poisoning Associated with Precooked Ham, Bermuda, 2011 and is authored by Ms Dy-Juan DeRoza, Assessment Officer at the Department of Health.
The objective of the paper was to describe an outbreak of Staphylococcal food poisoning associated with precooked ham at a catered breakfast at a local school which occurred in June 2011.
Staphylococcal food poisoning is one of the most common foodborne illnesses and is characterized by a sudden onset of vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea which usually occurs 30 minutes to eight hours after eating contaminated food.
The paper explains that structured interviews of breakfast attendees by Department of Health staff were used to conduct a retrospective cohort study which identified a statistically significant association between consumption of ham and illness. Clinical specimens from ill persons, the implicated food handler and a sample of the implicated food were then collected for microbiological and chemical analysis.
Staphylococcus aureus was isolated from the stool specimens of ill persons, the implicated ham and the nasal swab of the asymptomatic, implicated food handler.
Through use of pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) at a reference laboratory, a unique PFGE strain of Staphylococcal enterotoxin was identified that not only connected the food, food-handler, and ill persons but also had not been seen elsewhere.
Environmental assessments of the two catering establishments involved were also conducted.
Acting Head of Administration for the Department of Health David Kendell said: “This outbreak demonstrated how the integration of epidemiological, laboratory and environmental aspects in food-borne disease surveillance can result in prompt, thorough and successful outbreak investigations allowing for appropriate implementation of prevention and control measures.”
Mr. Kendell added: “The ‘detective work’ that is involved with a process like this is almost ‘CSI’ in nature… it entails discovering the cause of the illness, what the illness is and then tracing it back to its source…and all with a degree of certainty that, if this was a court case, could be proved beyond reasonable doubt.
“However, we must stress it can’t be done in every case….this is exceptional, which is precisely why it will be presented at the conference in May.”
The Minister of Health and Seniors Patricia Gordon-Pamplin said: “The fact that this paper has been accepted for presentation at such a prestigious health conference clearly demonstrates the abilities of the Department of Health when it comes to identifying and dealing with food borne illness.”
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