MRSA claims swallow 10% of healthcare budget

Link: MRSA claims boosting legal bill.

Up to 10% of the Irish healthcare budget could be spent on legal claims boosted by complaints of MRSA infection, a medical/legal expert says. John Scurr says the figure, established by some surveys in Britain and the US, is likely to apply here as well. Mr Scurr is a vascular surgeon, and also founder of Medico-Legal Chambers Ireland. "Patient expectations have risen dramatically and people now expect to have perfect operations. They don't expect to stay in a hospital for prolonged periods but unfortunately nowadays, this is often the case," Mr Scurr said. Ireland has one of the highest rates of infection with MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus) in Europe. Mr Scurr compares nearly 600 reported cases in 2005 with 11 in Denmark and four in Norway.