Three heater-cooler units — equipment used to heat and cool patients during heart surgery — tested positive for Legionella bacteria at the University of Washington Medical Center in Seattle, according to an article on the Becker's Infection Control & Clinical Quality website.
The bacteria infected four patients at the hospital with Legionnaires' disease. Two of the infected patients died.
The source of the outbreak has been linked to the hospital's water system as bacteria was detected in an ice machine and two sinks in the cardiac unit.
Though the water used to run the heater-cooler units does not come into direct contact with patients, the equipment has been linked to other outbreaks involving pathogens, the article said.
Why Healthcare Facilities Management Is Critical to Patient Safety 
Brookdale Senior Living Announces Acquisition of the Brookdale Galleria Community
Erlanger Health System Falls Victim to Data Breach
Technological Readiness: The Missing Construction Milestone
From Cooling Towers to Cost Savings: Hospital Seizes Power-Saving Opportunity