Radboud University Medical Center in the Netherlands has placed 12 employees in six‑week precautionary quarantine after incorrect procedures were followed while treating a patient infected with hantavirus, the hospital said Monday.
The breach involved the handling of blood samples and the disposal of the patient’s urine.
“This blood was processed according to standard procedure. Due to the nature of the virus, this blood should have been processed according to a stricter procedure,” Radboudumc said, without detailing the additional measures required. The hospital said it also learned Saturday that international guidelines for urine disposal had not been followed.
Radboudumc said the risk of infection is “very low,” but the affected staff members were placed in preventive quarantine. “These measures have a significant impact on everyone involved,” said Bertine Lahuis, chair of the hospital’s executive board.
The patient, infected with hantavirus, was admitted Thursday from the Dutch cruise ship MV Hondius.