Resistant Vancomycin Quote by Joan Didion
““At Beth Israel there had been Acinetobacter baumannii, which was resistant to vancomycin. "That's how you know it's a hospital infection," I recall being told by a doctor I asked at Columbia Presbyterian. "If it's resistant to vanc it's hospital. Because vanc only gets used in hospital settings.””
About This Quote
Source Interview: Joan Didion on health topics, 2015
Hospital-acquired infections often involve bacteria resistant to antibiotics only used in hospitals, indicating the setting of infection.
In simple terms: Resistant bacteria signal hospital infection.
Key Takeaway
Recognize antibiotic resistance as a clue to infection source.
Themes
medicine
infection control
antibiotic resistance
Mood
concerned
analytical
Type
clinical
educational
When to use this quote
- diagnosing infections
- infection control protocols
- patient education
Key Concepts
microbiology
hospital epidemiology
Questions to Reflect On
- How can clinicians differentiate community vs. hospital strains?
- What steps reduce hospital infection spread?
A Different Perspective
Resistance patterns may vary; not all resistant cases are hospital-acquired.
![“I read so ravenously that I would read through whole categories. I was crazy about reading biographies. [...] I think biographies are very urgent to children.” quote by Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a53/joan-didion-497_biographies_i-read-so-ravenously-that-i-would-read-t_43631.jpg)
