World MRSA Day 2010 Theme, 'The MRSA Epidemic - A Call to Action'

CHICAGO, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- MRSA Survivors Network, the nonprofit and official organization for World MRSA Day has announced the theme for 2010:  "The MRSA Epidemic- A Call to Action." This theme was chosen to raise awareness for MRSA and draw attention to the dire need for an immediate response to the growing global threat, www.worldmrsaday.org.

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Jeanine Thomas, founder states, "For the past year, H1N1 flu along with all the media hype has taken the focus off the true epidemic, MRSA. MRSA is rising at alarming rates in healthcare facilities and in the community: MRSA is the real public health disaster – people are dying."

Advocates are calling on world leaders and health organizations to commit to taking immediate action in healthcare facilities, to educate the public and to initiate in healthcare facilities a pro-active approach to eradicate MRSA by using the evidence-based method of active detection and isolation.

Companies who have already stepped up again to help raise awareness for MRSA in the U.S. and are official 2010 sponsors are: StaphAseptic (Tec Labs) and 3M.

"We need all countries to report MRSA infection and colonization rates so we can understand the true magnitude of the epidemic/pandemic," states Jeanine Thomas.

MRSA Survivors Network commends the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, the U.K. and U.S. veteran hospitals along with other pro-active hospitals around the world who acted decisively by using active detection and isolation. Six states in the U.S. have passed mandated MRSA screening legislation.

Initiated by MRSA Survivors Network, the U.S. Senate passed senate resolution 301 on Oct. 5, 2009 designating World MRSA Day, Oct. 2 and World MRSA Awareness Month, October.

The annual kick-off event for World MRSA Day will be held Oct. 1st at Loyola University Chicago, north shore campus.  All other events will be held on Oct. 2nd and throughout the month of October, World MRSA Awareness Month.

MRSA Survivors Network's alliance partner, MRSA Action UK will coordinate events in England and both organizations work hand-in-hand to raise awareness and save lives.

Founder Jeanine Thomas was the first advocate in the U.S. in 2002 to raise the alarm about MRSA and healthcare-acquired infections and founded MRSA Survivors Network in 2003. She was critically ill from MRSA, sepsis, osteomyelitis and C. difficile.

For more information on sponsorship and partnership opportunities contact Jeanine Thomas at 630 325-4354 USA, [email protected] , www.mrsasurvivors.org or www.worldmrsaday.org.

SOURCE MRSA Survivors Network