The Algarve’s regional health inspection service said Legionella has been detected in an Algarve health centre but that "there is no risk for users.”
Ana Cristina Guerrero from Saúde do Algarve said that Legionella was found during one of the regular inspections made in hospitals, hotels and other public buildings and confirmed that the bacteria had been found “in an area of the health centre in Vila Real de Santo António."
The Legionella was detected in an old plumbing system and measures already have been taken to isolate the Unidade de Cuidados Continuados area within the health center.
Guerrero said that "there is no risk for users" and that "the necessary steps are being taken" to return the situation to normal, although there has been some disruption to normal services.
Asked if the bacteria was a recent find, Guerreiro said that "these issues cannot be solved overnight, this is old plumbing, and it took two to three weeks to evaluate the situation and work out a solution but we can reassure people that it is done. There may be some disruption in the services provided but there has been no risk to health centre users."
How Legionella has become risk free to patients was not explained, neither is the protocol of keeping the health centre open while work goes on to deal with the problem of a potentially deadly bacteria.
