PHOENIX — The VA hospital in Phoenix says it has relocated 20 patients after routine testing discovered “unacceptable levels” of the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease in the water system of one of its buildings.
A hospital statement announcing the finding Friday evening said Legionnaires’-causing bacteria was detected in a building housing a residential substance-abuse program. So far, no patients have showed symptoms of the disease, according to Jean Schaefer, a Phoenix VA Health Care System spokeswoman.
Schaefer said the affected building has a self-contained water system and that the bacteria were not present elsewhere on campus, including the main hospital and ambulatory care center at Central Avenue and Indian School Road.
Legionnaires’ disease is a severe form of bacterial pneumonia caused by the bacteria legionella, which gets its name from an outbreak that killed 29 people attending an American Legion conference in Philadelphia in 1976.
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The bacteria grow best in warm water, such as water in hot tubs, cooling towers, air-conditioners, mist sprayers in grocery stores, hot water tanks and large plumbing systems, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. People get Legionnaires’ disease when they breathe in a mist or vapor containing the bacteria.
Schaefer said experts will work to determine the bacteria’s source and develop a remedial plan.
“We found out about the test results this afternoon, so we’re making arrangements to bring experts in on Monday,” she said. “The immediate need was to make sure the patients were taken out of the building.”
Most people exposed to legionella don’t become sick, according to the CDC. A person with Legionnaires’ is not contagious, and the bacteria cannot be spread from person to person.
USA Today contributed to this article.
