The H-Bug Epidemic: The Impact of Antibiotic-Resistant Staphylococcal Infection on New Zealand Society and Health 1955-1963
type: CreativeWork
description: An epidemic of staphylococcal infections occurred in New Zealand hospitals and communities from 1955-1963. The 'H', or 'Hospital Bug', a strain of Staphylococcus aureus characteristic of the epidemic, was resistant to the most commonly used antibiotics. Post-operative patients, the frail elderly and mothers and babies were particularly vulnerable to staphylococcal colonization and infection. This thesis places the H-Bug epidemic in its historical context, discussing the ways in which the government and health professionals responded to the rising incidence of staphylococcal infection, and the major effects of the epidemic on medical and hospital practice. It also examines the impact of persistent staphylococcal infection on women and families in the community. Primary sources provided the basis for this thesis. The H-Bug epidemic has gone largely unrecorded except in contemporary documents. Health Department files and Auckland Hospital Board records as well as newspaper clippings were important sources. The New Zealand epidemic was clearly linked to the global pandemic of antibiotic resistant staphylococcal infection, 1946-1966, through medical literature and archival documents. International medical journals, including the New Zealand Medical Journal, published numerous articles on the epidemiology of antibiotic-resistant staphylococcal infection, providing an excellent record of research, case studies, current opinion, and recommended practice. The most valuable contribution to an understanding of the impact and experience of the H-Bug epidemic was, however, provided by the nineteen people who agreed to be interviewed for the study. Interviewees included a wide variety of health professionals and women and their children, all of whom had personal experience or association with the epidemic. In this thesis it is argued that the main focus of the medical response was the prevention and control of hospital cross-infection, both to protect patients and to preserve the…
abstract: An epidemic of staphylococcal infections occurred in New Zealand hospitals and communities from 1955-1963. The 'H', or 'Hospital Bug', a strain of Staphylococcus aureus characteristic of the epidemic, was resistant to the most commonly used antibiotics. Post-operative patients, the frail elderly and mothers and babies were particularly vulnerable to staphylococcal colonization and infection. This thesis places the H-Bug epidemic in its historical context, discussing the ways in which the government and health professionals responded to the rising incidence of staphylococcal infection, and the major effects of the epidemic on medical and hospital practice. It also examines the impact of persistent staphylococcal infection on women and families in the community. Primary sources provided the basis for this thesis. The H-Bug epidemic has gone largely unrecorded except in contemporary documents. Health Department files and Auckland Hospital Board records as well as newspaper clippings were important sources. The New Zealand epidemic was clearly linked to the global pandemic of antibiotic resistant staphylococcal infection, 1946-1966, through medical literature and archival documents. International medical journals, including the New Zealand Medical Journal, published numerous articles on the epidemiology of antibiotic-resistant staphylococcal infection, providing an excellent record of research, case studies, current opinion, and recommended practice. The most valuable contribution to an understanding of the impact and experience of the H-Bug epidemic was, however, provided by the nineteen people who agreed to be interviewed for the study. Interviewees included a wide variety of health professionals and women and their children, all of whom had personal experience or association with the epidemic. In this thesis it is argued that the main focus of the medical response was the prevention and control of hospital cross-infection, both to protect patients and to preserve the…
author: Jowitt, Deborah Mary
keywords: Drug resistance in microorganisms, Antibiotics, History, Hospitals, Safety measures, Maternal health services, Health Studies
date published: 2004
date modified: 2026-07-27T18:45:47Z
provider: AUT University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: AUT University