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Health district officials said today that they are “pretty confident” they have identified another patient who contracted hepatitis C at a Las Vegas clinic.
If confirmed, the case would be the first new one identified since health officials announced three weeks ago that unsafe injection practices at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada resulted in six individuals contracting hepatitis C. Another 40,000 patients of the clinic have been notified that they should be tested for infectious diseases.
This new case involves a different clinic, the Desert Shadow Endoscopy Center of Nevada at 4275 Burnham Ave. in Las Vegas. It is owned by Dr. Vishvinder Sharma and Dr. Om Hari.
Dr. Lawrence Sands, chief health officer for the Southern Nevada Heath District, said during a Clark County Commission meeting today that the new patient in question had a blood test immediately before a procedure at the Desert Shadow clinic and it was negative for hepatitis C.
Sands also said the district evaluated the patient’s risk factors for contracting hepatitis C and found the only risk was the procedure at Desert Shadow, Sands said.
“We feel pretty confident from the information we have so far that there is a link there,” he said.
Sands said the health district is still awaiting records from the clinic – which are now in the hands of law enforcement – so that health officials can finish their investigation and determine whether a second wave of notifications are necessary.
Sands said he wanted to make Clark County officials aware of the case because they were weighing whether to suspend business licenses of the Desert Shadow clinic and two other clinics.
Commissioners voted to issue limited suspensions. The suspension prevents any invasive procedures at the facilities, but allows the clinics’ doctors to consult patients, provide medical records and write prescriptions. Those are non-issues now because all three clinics are closed.
Their attorney, Jay Brown, told commissioners that law enforcement agencies have seized the clinics’ records, but he said the clinics expect to have those records – or copies of them – returned soon. When that happens, the clinics want to be able to share those records with patients and provide consultations.
Commissioners required the clinics to notify the county that they have received the records before opening again.
Hello!!!! My wife has notified the Health district 3 times that she HAD HEP C. Thats all anyone wants to talk about,NEW PEOPLE. What about the people that contracted it, delt with it, took treatment & hopefully as my wife is now negative.She has blood tests since 1995 that show NO LIVER activity. Procedure done June 7,2005 at Endoscopy Center. Blood test August 22,2005 Positive for Hep C. WE HAVE THE RECORDS.
There are people who have it NOW, don't forget about them.
Hello Carlbrun. I am sorry to see noone has added to your message or responded directly to you. I am shocked you have not heard from the Heath Department. If my understanding is correct, your wife found out she had Hepatitis C on her own somehow, but was not informed of this by the Health Department, nor interviewed by the Health Department as to how she may have contracted it or for any other reason. Is my understanding correct?
Maybe you should contact the National Health Department in Atlanta...
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA 30333, U.S.A. Switchboard: (404) 639-3311 / Public Inquiries: (404) 639-3534 / (800) 311-3435 - Be sure to included information on your previous calls and/or letters (copies) to our local Health Department and their lack of response to you.
This is not to say you shouldn't follow-up with local authorities on the fact that our own local Health Department has not contacted you regarding your wife's 3 reports.
As you said you have records, I would also suggest, since you are not seeing action with our health department, take your records to an attorney. If you are correct, and your records document this, then you will see your justice in the arena of a courtroom.
I'm in the same boat. Previous testing negative for any disease, had my procedure at the Shadow Lane facility in 2004 and am now Hep B positive and undergoing further testing/evaluation. Listen up people, get tested if you have had a procedure by these "people".
Hi Snippy...I tried to tell the Health District about my case and all they did was tell me to tell my doctor to call them about it! What a joke! Like my doctor is gonna sit on hold for 15 minutes to talk to someone abou this! I am getting the feeling that the Health District is backing off since the county will most likely bear some responsibility for this whole mess with poor inspections and little oversight. I'm sure we'll see some circling of the wagons before long.
To Carlbrun and Jim,
I am so very sorry to read tests were positive and that you have been ignored by our public health system. I'm certain the past several years have probably been most difficult for the you and your families. Snippy is right on. You should not be relegated to the sidelines. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us. We are pulling for you, your families and for justice to prevail.
I am very sorry to hear about this and as I stated to Carl; I am a Private Investigator for a Dallas firm. We have a client that had gone to one of these clinics and we are awaiting her results. We are extremely concerned about EVERYONE not just "New People". If you or anyone out there would like our help PLEASE contact me at:
barbmartin_2000@yahoo.com or martininvestigation@yahoo.com
No one has the right to put your health and life at risk, and what was the reasoning for this?..sounds like GREED to me!
Thank you,
Barbara
I am an advocate for awareness, the truth, and a person's right to know. I believe that in the absence of the truth, all of us stand helpless to defend ourselves.