Tag Archives: baskin-robbins

Vaccinate: Hawaii Baskin-Robbins workers harassed, business crippled over Hepatitis A

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Marisa Yamane of KHON2 reports the Baskin-Robbins at Waikele Center used to be the busiest in the state.

Now, it’s the emptiest.

baskin.robbins“That’s why we only have one person working now, because it’s really that slow,” Baskin-Robbins employee Erika Espiritu said.

On July 12, the Hawaii State Department of Health (DOH) announced that anyone who ate at Baskin-Robbins at Waikele Center between June 17 and July 3, 2016 (actual dates: June 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 27, 30, and July 1 and 3), may have been exposed to hepatitis A.

That’s because one of the workers there caught the virus.

Since then, business has dropped 75 percent.

“The toughest part is having to take in all the harassment because I worked the — I might tear up — I worked the next morning and people would call and say mean stuff, and you just have to take it in, because you can’t control what people think,” Espiritu said.

She said people have told them they want to sue the store, or that they want the store to pay for their family to get vaccinated.

In fact, state epidemiologist Dr. Sarah Park said the store is “not at fault. They should not be looked down upon. This could happen to any food establishment out there.”

“We don’t deserve to be harassed or slandered because it’s not fair. We didn’t ask for our employee to have the infection, you know,” Espiritu said.

Vaccines work: Oahu hepatitis A outbreak up to 74 cases

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KHON 2 reports that according to the state Department of Health, there are 74 confirmed cases of hepatitis A in the current outbreak.

hepatits-a-vaccinationSince the last update on July 12, 2016, HDOH has identified 22 new cases of hepatitis A, 26 have required hospitalization.

All of the cases are residents of Oahu with the exception of two individuals who now live on the islands of Hawaii and Maui, but were on Oahu during their exposure period.

The onset of illness for the cases have ranged between 6/12/2016 and 7/14/2016.

The source of the outbreak remains under investigation. Identifying the source of infection is a challenge due to the long incubation period of the disease. This makes it difficult for patients to accurately recall the foods consumed and locations visited during the period when infection could have taken place.

The site also identifies two restaurants where employees tested positive for the virus: Baskin-Robbins in Waikele and Taco Bell in Waipio.

 

With 52 sick vaccination is simple handwashing not so much: Hawaiian ice cream store worker confirmed with Hepatitis A, but source unknown

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Gregg K. Kakesako of the Star Advertiser writes that patrons of a Baskin-Robbins ice cream store in Waikele Center during the last two months may have been exposed to the hepatitis A virus after one of the store’s employees was confirmed to have the disease, the state Health Department said today.

Baskin-RobbinsPeople who haven’t had the hepaptitis A vaccine or immune globulin and who consumed any food or drinks from the Waikele store on June 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 25, 27, 30, and July 1 and 3 should contact their healthcare providers about getting vaccinated, which may provide some protection against the disease if administered within the first two weeks after exposure, the Health Department said in a news release.

There have been 52 cases of hepatitis A reported to and now confirmed by health officials.

All cases have been in adults on Oahu, 16 have required hospitalization.

“The source of this outbreak has still not been determined. In the meantime, we encourage all persons consider and talk to their healthcare provider about getting vaccinated,” said State Epidemiologist Dr. Sarah Park. “This case demonstrates the potential to spread hepatitis A virus to many others who remain susceptible. In an effort to stem the spread of disease, individuals, including food service employees, exhibiting symptoms of hepatitis A infection should stay home and contact their healthcare provider.”

The head of the Hawaii Restaurant Association, Gregg Fraser, said “It’s as simple as frequent hand washing with warm water. Not only wash it in the bathroom, but when you enter the kitchen. There (are) typically 2 or 3 points of hand washing. There is a hand-washing sink in the kitchen as well.”

“If I was a restaurant manager right now, I’d make sure that all of my employees had the vaccine. I’d even pay for it,” he said.

The vaccine part makes sense. The handwashing advice with warm water is wrong.

And how happy are restaurant owners going to be if their employees actually followed all government sanctioned advice, and didn’t work when they were sick, washed their hands everytime they were supposed to, like after scratching their nose, or wore cloves and then scratched their ass.

It’s not simple.