Water Ban Doesn't Affect MGH Institute, Boston's Health Sciences Graduate School

May 3, 2010 - PRLog -- If there ever was a good time to have a mandated water usage ban at the MGH Institute of Health Professions Charlestown Navy Yard campus, this is the week for it.

Normally, the health sciences graduate school would have hundreds of nursing, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology students in class with their professors. But most people are off campus this week as the school prepares for its 30th Commencement ceremony this Saturday, May 8.

The water ban was instituted over the weekend after a water main broke at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority’s Weston treatment facility. The incident triggered Governor Deval Patrick to issue a state of emergency for as many as 2 million people living in the Greater Boston area.

The water has been deemed not safe for drinking unless it has been boiled, but people can use it to bathe.

On campus, the water supply has been shut down to prevent any possible contamination. People can purchase bottled water from the vending machines in Building 36, while the nearby Store 24 has bottled water as well.

Signs have been posted throughout the Institute’s three buildings reminding staff of the water restrictions:

• Do not drink any water that comes from the tap, faucets, or drinking fountains in the school's three buildings;
• Do not use tap water for oral hygiene, including rinsing the mouth or brushing teeth;
• Do not use tap water to make coffee or tea;
• Do not consume any ice from hospital ice machines;
• Do not use water from insta-hot dispensers; and
• After washing hands with soap and water, use Cal-stat to ensure that hands are disinfected.

More than 900 students are enrolled at the Boston graduate school. College graduates with a bachelor's degree can apply to become a registered nurse, nurse practitioner, physical therapist, speech-language pathologist, or radiologic technologist. For more information, visit http://www.mghihp.edu.

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About MGH Institute of Health Professions: It is an innovative and independent graduate school founded by Massachusetts General Hospital in 1977. A progressive leader in developing compre¬hensive models of health care education, the MGH Institute prepares advanced practice professionals in the fields of nursing, physical therapy, speech-language pathology, and medical imaging through a distinctive combination of academic study, clinical practice, and research. More than 900 students are enrolled in graduate level and certificate programs, with an increasing number of courses available online. The Institute is accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges.