Dear Editor,

I am an experienced registered nurse in a busy emergency department in one of the largest hospitals in Chicago. Just last night, as I left my shift, I had a conversation with a coworker about our water and its safety to us and our patients. The article by Drs Clark and John [Noscomial Infections and Bath Water: Any Cause for Concern, 20(3):119-123] was very timely and very interesting. I commend the authors for writing it. The safety of our water is something we take for granted. We trust that hospitals have adequate procedures for monitoring the water and filtration systems. I have never read or been told not to use the hospital water system for any reason. Staff uses the same juicers, ice machines, and tap water to wash and drink and never gives safety a second thought. Now I am wondering about immunocompromised patients who are given tap water to drink? How many times do nurses clean open wounds with water out of the tap? How often do we wash critically ill patients after incontinence? There are so many examples of using tap water in our daily work! Who is checking our water sources? It is almost frightening to think too much about it. You are right; we do need more research in this area. I will share the article with my coworkers. Thank you for writing it.

Milady Rodriguez-Gerger, BSN, RN

Forest Park, IL