You made your bed, now you lie in it!

"Random House Dictionary of Popular Proverbs and Sayings" by Gregory Y. Titelman says the above phrase 'you made your bed, now you lie in it', has been traced back to about 1590 and is related to the fifteenth century French proverb 'Comme on fait son lit, on le treuve' (As one makes one's bed, so one finds it). It was included in George Herbert's collection of proverbs in 1640 and in James Kelly's collection in 1721. It was first attested in the United States in 'Cy Whittaker's Place' (1908) by J.S. Lincoln, and is found in varying forms..." however, today I use it in an ironic form.

This week has had an infection control feel. It started whilst undertaking written tests of doctors English levels in a local hospital where I witnessed a patient argueing with a doctor. As my Algerian is still at elementary level, I asked a nurse in French what it was all about and she explained that the patient was insisting on using their own linen despite the hospital policy prohibiting this.
I was confused but pleased to hear that the hospital had such a policy as last year, a family member had been asked by a different hospital to bring their own linen with them as the hospital had run out.
My confusion and a well-timed lesson entitled 'patients expectations' enabled me to explore this further in my weekly Medical English class.

The doctors told me that patient's bring their own linen, and sometimes even their own mattress, as they do not trust the hospital linen to be clean. The lack of a regular water supply was partly blamed for the hospital's inability to provide a reliable quality service.
This is certainly something I'd be interested in investigating further and as luck would have it, I was fortunate enough to meet a Professor specialising in Infection Control just a few days later.
Unfortunately, we did not have time to discuss this particular matter on this occasion although I will try to remember next time we meet and add any insights to the blog later.

Instead, we discussed the system which her hospital has introduced where a 'link-person' for infection control has been identified in each department. This person is responsible for attending meetings to discuss any changes and then disseminating the information to their colleagues to ensure the message reaches as many staff as possible. This is a method of communicating important information with which I am familiar from the UK where it has been used to effectively update staff on universal issues such as diabetes, latex allergy and infection control amongst others.
I was also interested in her current work looking into the benefits of screening certain patients for MRSA prior to surgery following a high incidence on recent random screening, again a well-established practice in the UK following front page headlines of the infection's 'superbug' status.
At first, I was shocked to see that well recognised methods of infection prevention are only just being considered in Algeria but then I marvelled at the motivation of the Algerian doctors who, despite the difficulties they face, continue to strive to improve the conditions for their patients.
I was invited to the 1st Hospital Hygiene and Fight Against Nomocomial Infections Study Day being organised by her department and I am very much looking forward to attending, learning more about the Algerian health service and working with the inspiring people who work in it.