A rural hospital in Northern Victoria experienced an ongoing issue where water sampling for Legionella returned consistent, positive results. This occurred over a period of more than six months, with samples exhibiting colony counts of over 1,000 cfu/ml in some instances. Patient care was significantly impacted by this as showers and outlets in affected rooms had to be closed down. Ongoing disinfection (chemical, thermal) did not improve the situation.
Copper/silver disinfection was suggested by a consultant and subsequently a Bion Systems AccuionTM unit was installed on the 5th of July, 2011.
As can be seen by the next chart, from the moment the system was put in, subsequent Legionella tests returned very favourable results with Legionella results virtually dropping to zero.
As can be expected with copper/silver disinfection technology, the biofilm lining the pipework over time is gradually dissolved by the copper and silver ions and eventually gets flushed out of the system.
As the biofilm breaks down and gets released into the water stream, it may accumulate in certain areas of the system and can be detected as a Legionella positive before the system is finally clear. This is a transitory phase and as can also be seen in the following chart, there were some cases where samples tested as Legionella positive until the biofilm system was finally fully removed from all areas. This was completed by August of 2012.
Yet another case where copper/silver disinfection has proven effective where other methods of disinfection have failed.
The Bion Systems AccuionTM technology is the clear worldwide leader in the prevention of legionella and other pathogens in potable water systems. No other technology has the ability to proportionally dose copper and silver into varying flow rates, whilst at the same time self-compensating for water chemistry and anode wear.