INLAND EMPIRE – (INT) – Three employees at two local hospitals have been diagnosed with an active form of tuberculosis (TB).

Riverside County health officials are trying to determine who may have been exposed to the disease at Hemet Valley Medical Center and Parkview Community Hospital in Riverside. As of last report, it’s unknown how the employees contracted the illness. They are undergoing treatment and are expected to recover.

About 2,100 staff members and patients who may have been exposed at the hospitals are being notified to be tested for TB.

“The risk of transmission is low, but TB can still be a serious illness,” said Dr. Cameron Kaiser, public health officer for the county.

Tuberculosis is a disease spread through the air during prolonged, repeated and close contact with an individual who is infected.

An occasional case of TB is reported at schools. But, hospital incidents are rare.

Story Date: May 31, 2017