Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus - MRSA & Staph Infection (Staff and Golden Staph) Symptoms & Treatment Worldwide

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Infection Control Seminar Invites

Link: Book your place at Oxoid infection control seminar: News from Oxoid.

     This is the third year that Oxoid has hosted its popular Infection Control Seminar. Visitors to last year's event were quoted as saying, 'Much better than many courses that I have paid for,' and, 'A very informative and well organised event with great opportunities to mingle with colleagues and share ideas and experiences.' The seminar is free to attend, but places do need to be booked in advance. The full day's agenda includes:. CJD: implications in infection control - Pat Cattini, clinical nurse specialist infection control, Kingston Hospital NHS Trust. MRSA: comparative evaluation of Oxoid Chromogenic MRSA agar and an introduction to routine use - Ros Montgomery, Nottingham University Queen's Medical Centre. MRSA: issues surrounding hospital-acquired infections from a patient's viewpoint - Arnold Fewell, MRSA patient. Environmental monitoring: lessons that can be learned, by hospitals, about environmental monitoring and control from the food industry - Chris Griffith, University of Cardiff. Multi-resistant Gram-negative organisms - Dr Soothill, consultant microbiologist at Great Ormond Street Hospital. Eradicating healthcare-associated environmental organisms: laboratory-based evidence for cleaning protocols - professor Mike Wren, consultant biomedical scientist (microbiology), University College Hospital, London and visiting professor, University of Westminster. Legal issues surrounding hospital-acquired infections: MRSA and patient claims - Anne Reed, solicitor. To request a place (places will be allocated on a first come first served basis), please contact Fiona Macrae, clinical applications manager, Oxoid

Senior nurses giving up on MRSA control

Link: HubMed Abstracts.

     AIM: To examine the extent to which staff nurses feel that MRSA is out of control and that any attempts by them to control it are unnecessary. METHOD: A qualitative research paradigm with semi-structured interviews to examine the perceptions, attitudes and beliefs of 10 senior staff nurses. RESULTS: In the study, 60% of participants believe that MRSA is out of control and state 'why should they bother worrying about it'. Furthermore, 80% of participants commented that prescribed courses of nasal mupirocin were frequently missed. The perception is that IV treatments were more important and effective than topical agents. CONCLUSION: The study has established that a small section of experienced staff nurses perceive MRSA to be out of control and they are not overly concerned about its management.

Cleaning policies missing the key areas - handles and buttons?

Link: FT.com

     Hospital wards need "clever cleaning" to combat the risk of patients becoming infected with the MRSA superbug from their bedside cabinet handle and the nurse call button, a Unison health conference was told.  Dr Stephanie Dancer, a consultant microbiologist, said current NHS policy on MRSA, which focuses cleaning on floors and toilets and frequent hand washing, was inadequate to cope with the threat of patients contracting the "microscopic assassin". Dr Dancer, who has studied MRSA - methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus - and other infections for nearly 20 years, said the conventional "floors and toilets" approach to cleaning was insufficient because it missed out the bedside surfaces which, her research suggests, are prime carriers of MRSA.

Importance of basic procedures stressed

Link: Importance of basic cleaning procedures stressed.

   To significantly reduce healthcare-acquired infections in the NHS, more collaborative working is needed, and greater attention given to basic procedures. This became clear at the Hospital Hygiene conference held recently at ExCeL, London, as NICHOLAS MARSHALL and JASON RAYFIELD report. Driving forward major reductions in healthcare-acquired infections in the NHS is a task needing scrupulous attention given to key factors such as hand hygiene and the cleaning of surfaces likely to be contaminated, the Hospital Hygiene conference heard. Though the task may be defined as uncomplicated, implementing effective regimes – and sustaining the use of these – is not straightforward and it demands, in some areas, significant behavioural change. Clearly, more attention needs to be given to basic procedures for ensuring completely satisfactory standards of cleanliness and hygiene. Professor Christine Beasley, chief nursing officer, Department of Health, told delegates on the first day of the conference that beginning to reduce was a widespread belief that hospitals were dirty. People who had used hospitals recently were likely to perceive the premises had become cleaner. Attention still needed to be focused on high usage areas such as entrances, A&E departments and lavatories where cleanliness could remain unsatisfactory. She reflected on how, in the early 1990s, there had been a lack of investment in cleaning – both that conducted as an inhouse activity and that contracted out. Prof Beasley said the UK now led in healthcare-acquired infection surveillance. An established aim was to significantly reduce cases of HAIs caused by MRSA and other pathogens, and there was also a goal to increase public confidence in hospitals by ensuring that the premises were clean and safe.

Shropshire hospital sees growth of harder to treat strain 16

Link: ShropshireStar.com

       A shortage of cleaners and infection control nurses at Shropshire hospitals could lead to a rise in superbug cases, a report from health watchdogs warns today. There are “considerable concerns” that a cash crisis at the hospitals is having an impact on the number of nurses dealing with infection control, it says, adding that public areas are not being cleaned adequately. It claims a shortage of cleaning staff means they are forced to concentrate on clinical areas. Although the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital Trust is hitting overall MRSA reduction targets, there are fears that the more virulent MRSA 16 clone is “taking over” from other forms of the infection. “This results in most staff being focused on clinical areas with the resultant inadequate cleaning of public areas,” says the report. It warns MRSA 16 appears to be “taking over” from MRSA 15 and this was “unfortunate” as it is more resistant antibiotic resistant. There are particular problems with it on the colo-rectal ward at the Royal Shrewsbury.

Infection control winners announced

Link: News from Oxoid.

     Oxoid announces that the 2005/2006 Oxoid Infection Control Team of the Year Awards, with £5000 first prize, has been awarded to Craigavon Area Hospital Group Trust, Co Armagh, N Ireland The judges were unanimous in awarding the first prize to Craigavon Area Hospital Group Trust, whose outstanding teamwork and communication has resulted in both good outcomes for patients and significant financial savings. The team's many positive outcomes included: intervention programmes resulting in reduced rates of Clostridium difficile and MRSA infections; a six week audit of the use of Tazocin to reduce unnecessary usage (thus achieving substantial savings in the drug budget); investigation and successful control of outbreaks of Norovirus, endopthalmitis and MRSA; development of a protocol for the decontamination of high touch surfaces; research into the carriage of MRSA on mobile telephones (where a paper has been published in the January 2006 issue of the Journal of Hospital Infection).

MRSA Control Program Reduces Impact on Intensive Care Unit

Link: News

Well worth a read. They had particular sucess with Ventilator Associated Pnuemonia

      Programmes to control nosocomial transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in intensive care units (ICUs) can be very effective at reducing MRSA infections, even if carried out on a background of hyperendemic incidence and infection, a retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data suggests. Principal investigator Angelo Pan, MD, consultant in infectious diseases, Institute of Tropical and Infective Diseases, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy, presented the analysis results here on April 3rd at the 16th European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ECCMID). Dr. Pan said the setting for this MRSA control program was an 850-bed hospital in Italy that handles some 27,000 admissions per year. This includes a 10-bed medical/surgical unit, and from the year 2000 also a neurosurgical unit and ICU.

Feds' infectious diseases strategy must be broader than biodefense, say ID physicians

Link: Feds' infectious

      As Congress updates anti-bioterrorism legislation, it must take action now to protect the nation against the pressing threats of pandemic influenza, antibiotic-resistant infections, and other serious naturally occurring infections, according to the nation's leading society of infectious diseases physicians and researchers. The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Health is considering reauthorization of the Project BioShield Act, legislation passed in 2004 that is designed to spur companies into making countermeasures against a bioterrorist attack. However, in testimony before the subcommittee today, Martin J. Blaser, MD, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), emphasized a different threat, one that infectious diseases physicians witness every day: the burden of antimicrobial-resistant infections such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). "Antimicrobial resistant infections have created a 'silent epidemic' in communities and hospitals across the country," Dr. Blaser said, crippling and killing a growing number of otherwise-healthy people and driving up health care costs. To make matters worse, the pharmaceutical industry has lost interest in developing new antibiotics to fight these infections because they are not as profitable as drugs for chronic conditions such as heart disease. IDSA outlined this problem and proposed solutions in its July 2004 report, Bad Bugs, No Drugs: As Antibiotic Discovery Stagnates…A Public Health Crisis Brews. Also, Dr. Blaser noted, "the impact of an influenza pandemic cannot be overstated." Even a mild pandemic would claim hundreds of thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars. H5N1 is showing ominous signs of becoming a pandemic strain, and despite increased attention to the problem, Dr. Blaser said, "the Institute of Medicine and virtually all experts conclude that the United States is woefully unprepared" for a flu pandemic.

66% of Doctors say Infection Control has Worsened

Link: HospitalDoctor News Article.

     Many doctors are also concerned that key issues affecting public health have worsened in the past ten years. More than 90 per cent say obesity rates have risen, while 75 per cent point to rising levels of stress and overwork, and 66 per cent say infection control has worsened, leading to more MRSA. More than half say illegal drug use has increased. The biggest single threat to the health of the nation is obesity, say 54 per cent of doctors, with 16 per cent citing smoking and ten per cent suggesting alcoholism.

CDC warns hospital patients to stay cautious of dangerous bacteria: South Florida Sun-Sentinel

Link: South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

Click through for longer story including innovative action in Florida

       Pauline Hall, of Boca Raton, developed a high fever and was hospitalized to determine the cause. Doctors figured out that she had an infection caused when the family cat nipped her on the ankle, and successfully treated it with antibiotics. She was in the hospital for 10 days, then released temporarily to a nursing home to get her strength back, but a few days later was readmitted to the hospital with another high fever. LocalLinks Hall died seven months later after a long battle with at least three bacterial infections that developed in the health-care setting. She spent time in a hospital and a nursing home in Palm Beach County, and a long-term care hospital in Broward County.

US Hospital slashes infections by 85%

Link: RID - NY Times Article - Medical Courts.

Great article - click the link above for more

   Illinois residents, like most Americans, are paying with their lives and their pocketbooks for poor hygiene in their hospitals. Infections are raging through hospitals. The threat has become so bad that one out of every 20 patients contracts an infection in the hospital. Earlier this month, more than 1,000 concerned doctors and nurses met here in Chicago to discuss ways we might curb this deadly problem. As it stands now, however, there's bad news and good news for anyone who has to be hospitalized. First the bad news: The danger is worsening. Increasingly, hospital infections cannot be cured with commonly used antibiotics. In 1974, only 2 percent of staphylococcus aureus infections (the most common type found in hospitals) were drug-resistant. By 2003, that figure had soared to more than 57 percent and is still rising. Denmark, Holland and Finland once faced similar soaring rates but brought them down below 1 percent through rigorous enforcement of hand-cleaning rules, meticulous cleaning of equipment and rooms in between patient use, testing of all incoming patients to identify those carrying dangerous bacteria like staph, and taking precautions to ensure that these bacteria are not spread to other patients on gloves, uniforms, stethoscopes, wheelchairs and other equipment. Now the good news: These precautions work here, too! A few U.S. hospitals are proving it. The University of Virginia Hospital, the Veterans Hospital in Pittsburgh, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center-Presbyterian Hospital, and a coalition of 29 health care institutions in Iowa have reduced drug-resistant infections by 85 percent or more in pilot programs, using these same precautions.

IHI Announces More Than 60,000 Lives Already Saved Through its 100,000 Lives Campaign

Link: Infection Control Today

     CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) announces that its landmark campaign to save 100,000 lives in U.S. hospitals by June 14, 2006 has already saved 60,500 lives (as of March 13) – with three months still to go. More than 3,000 acute-care hospitals in all 50 states and the District of Columbia have joined the Campaign, which continues to transform American health care and demonstrate historic results. Launched in December 2004, the 100,000 Lives Campaign is the first-ever national initiative that aims to save a large and specified number of lives by a certain date. The Campaign asks participating hospitals to implement six evidence-based interventions. In addition to saving lives, the Campaign has demonstrated remarkable achievement in patient care. Twenty hospitals enrolled in the Campaign, for instance, have had no cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) for one year or more. VAP, a lung infection and a leading killer among hospital-acquired infections, is addressed by one of the Campaign’s interventions.  Hospitals are reporting comparable successes with other Campaign interventions and setting new standards for hospitals across the country.

Can pre-operative skin marking transfer MRSA?

Link: Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery - British Volume.

     National guidelines state that in patients undergoing operations the site of the procedure should be marked. In clinical practice the same marker is used repeatedly. We are not aware of any investigation regarding the theoretical risk of transferring organisms such as methicillin-resistant Staphyloccocus aureus (MRSA) between patients by a skin marker. In an experimental setting, Penflex and Viomedex skin markers were tested 30 times each after contaminating them with a standard inoculum of MRSA. The survival of the organism on the tip of the markers was assessed by culture on MRSA-indicator nutrient agar plates at 0, 5, 15 and 60 minutes, 24 and 48 hours and at 1, 2, and 3 weeks after contamination. There was a significant difference between the markers, with the Penflex showing no survival of MRSA after 15 minutes whereas the Viomedex product continued to produce MRSA cultures for up to three weeks.

Waging war against infections

Link: Beacon Journal

     McGill said hospital officials thought they had been doing a pretty good job of fighting all the ``celebrity infections'' because the overall rates there were low compared with those of other facilities. But a closer look at more specific data showed they had plenty of room for improvement. Regarding the pneumonia cases, for example, the hospital ranked better than average throughout the 1990s in its rate of all pneumonia cases. But in 2003, when hospital staff members examined the rates of pneumonia caused by the use of ventilators, McGill said, they found the numbers were twice what they should be. So nurses began cleaning out patients' mouths more frequently -- every four hours. And most importantly, McGill said, staff members redoubled efforts and checked frequently to ensure that the heads of patients' beds were elevated at least 30 degrees to prevent saliva and bacteria from getting into the lungs. Consequently, McGill said, the pneumonia rate dropped from 10 cases per 1,000 days of ventilator use to about two -- less than half the standard rate at comparable hospitals. Now the hospital consistently goes for months without a ventilator-caused pneumonia case. In1998, the hospital had a very good record of administering presurgery antibiotics on time -- one of the most important factors in preventing surgical infections. Staffers were giving the antibiotics on time 95 percent of the time. But in 2003, the staff found that the on-time rate had dropped to about 50 percent. McGill said the order of procedures before surgery was changed, and the hospital brought the rate of delivering antibiotics on time back up to 92 percent or 93 percent. To reduce the bloodstream infections in its intensive care unit, Butler Memorial began using catheters and sponges that have bacteria-fighting features. Infection rates dropped from about three per 1,000 days using an intravenous line to 1.6 per 1,000 days.

Hospital overcrowding link to MRSA

Link: Hospital overcrowding link to MRSA.

     The study suggests a relationship between percentage bed occupancy and MRSA rates. It appears that the higher the level of occupancy, the greater the risk of MRSA infection. The researchers call for an examination of cleaning procedures, especially when time is limited. They also state that while, individual acts, such as hand washing, are important, 'there may be structural and systems issues' that contribute to the spread of hospital acquired infections. They acknowledged that in the Republic of Ireland, hospital managers, in a report to the Minister for Health, suggested that hygiene and cleanliness improvements alone were not sufficient to tackle MRSA unless the problem of high occupancy rates was also addressed. "It is only a matter of time before hospital CEOs and medical directors in the UK make a similar statement", the researchers said.

Inspectors warn over NHS hygiene

Link: BBC NEWS

     A total of 7,212, cases were detected in 2004-5 and experts suggest up to 300,000 infections which lead to 5,000 deaths are picked up in healthcare settings yearly. However, just over half the staff in 570 trusts in England and Wales said they had received training, learning or development about infection control over the past 12 months - implying that half had not. A further 28% of the 209,000 members of staff surveyed said there were high levels of hand cleaning equipment in their hospital or trust, but one-in-five said they never had access to such facilities. Healthcare Commission chief executive Anna Walker said it was worrying that "a small but significant minority" of staff found that adequate hand cleaning facilities were not always available when required.

Call for MRSA prevention for dialysis patients

Link: Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.

     Patients with catheters were more likely to be white, had shorter dialysis vintage, and had higher Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation II scores compared with patients with grafts. Unadjusted 12-wk mortality did not significantly differ between patients with catheters compared with patients with grafts (22.7 versus 10.0%; P = 0.098); neither did 12-wk costs differ by access type ($22,944 � 18,278 versus $23,969 � 13,731, catheter versus graft; P > 0.05). In adjusted analyses, there was no difference in 12-wk mortality (odds ratio 1.63; 95% confidence interval 0.29 to 9.02; catheter versus graft) or 12-wk costs (means ratio 0.84; 95% confidence interval 0.60 to 1.17; catheter versus graft) among SAB-infected patients with ESRD on the basis of hemodialysis access type. Twelve-week mortality and costs that are associated with an episode of SAB are high in hemodialysis patients, regardless of vascular access type. Efforts should focus on the prevention of SAB in this high-risk group.

Survey exposes NHS hygiene failings as superbug thrives

Link: Guardian Unlimited

     Nearly 40% of NHS staff do not have constant access to the hot water, soap, paper towels and alcohol rubs needed to prevent the spread of the MRSA superbug, the health inspectorate warned last night. The problem emerged in the Healthcare Commission's annual survey, published today, based on replies from 209,000 employees in 570 NHS trusts in England. One in four said trusts did not do enough to promote the importance of hand-cleaning to staff, patients and visitors.

More at the link above

Culture Change is at Core of Patient-Safety Improvements

Link: Infection Control Today

      More at the link above

     A new study of innovative patient-safety programs found an overriding “culture of safety” that transcends the six different initiatives analyzed. “Almost everyone that gets into this business comes to believe that a culture of safety is a critical factor in changing organizational performance regarding the safety of patients,” said study co-author and health-policy expert David Blumenthal, MD. The analysis offers health-system managers insight into the triumphs and challenges of colleagues who have tested initiatives to promote patient safety. It appears in the current issue of Milbank Quarterly, which tracks trends in healthcare policy. Co-author Douglas McCarthy is president of Issues Research, an independent policy research firm based in Durango, Colo. Blumenthal is director of the Institute for Health Policy at Massachusetts GeneralHospital. In 2000, the Institute of Medicine released the report, “To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System,” which found “a substantial body of evidence points to medical errors as a leading cause of death and injury.” The report recommended the creation of safety systems in health care organizations. The Milbank study authors use a definition of safety culture originated by human-error guru James Reason. The hallmarks of a culture of safety include a climate where “people are prepared to report their errors and near-misses” and a just atmosphere where there is clear line between “acceptable and unacceptable behavior.” An environment that promotes safety is a flexible culture that emphasizes teamwork

Hospital bed shortage means MRSA risk

Link: Patients infected

     Patients infected with MRSA are being mixed with uninfected patients at Western Isles Hospital, it was revealed last night. Western Isles SNP MP Angus MacNeil has written to Western Isles NHS Health Board after receiving leaked minutes from a management team meeting suggesting the problem had been caused by a reduction in beds over the past year from 84 to 59, which the board denies. Mr MacNeil said: "This again proves patient care at the hospital is suffering because staff have to take these measures because of lack of beds at the hospital. This is a serious matter when non-MRSA patients are being mixed in the same wards as patients with possible MRSA.

June conference to address infection control

Link: CDR Weekly: Diary.

     The 9th annual meeting on practical aspects of infection control.

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals and Sheffield Hallam University, in conjunction with the Hospital Infection Society, will run the ninth Don't Panic! meeting on 26 and 27June 2006 looking at current issues and practical aspects of Infection Control. It would be of interest to microbiologists and infection control nurses, public health staff and biomedical scientists. The meeting is recognised for CPD. The programme includes lectures on: Epidemiological investigation of outbreaks;Clostridium difficile – the Stoke Mandeville experience; Epidemiology and control of cryptosporidiosis; ESBLs – epidemiology, management and infection control, developing evidence-based guidelines –- where does MRSA fit in?; Current approaches to isolation of the vulnerable or infected patient; Asylum seeker health; Port health; Community-acquired MRSA– epidemiology and control; Prevention and control of cross-infection in the ICU; Infection in intravenous drug users; and Preparing for and managing avian and pandemic influenza.

Nurses appointed to tackle MRSA

Link: BBC NEWS

     A hospital trust is employing two MRSA support nurses to tackle the superbug. The nurses are based at the Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Trust's two main sites, Scunthorpe General and the Diana, Princess of Wales, hospitals. The MRSA support nurse's role has been newly-developed within the infection control department, to help fight the bug which has immunity to anti-biotics. The aim is for the two nurses to have a visible presence on wards, keeping a watchful eye on hygiene.

Financial Express Company Announcements (UK-Wire)

Link: (UK-Wire).

       The Department of Health's chief nursing officer, Professor Christine Beasley, is the opening speaker at the Hospital Hygiene Conference which takes place at ExCel, London from 16-17 March 2006. Hospital Hygiene is a new conference and exhibition dedicated to preventing hospital super-bugs which contribute to the deaths of up to 5,000 people in the UK every year. Other speakers include Jean Lawrence, chair of the Infection Control Nurses Association, Karen Taylor, director Health VFM Audit, National Audit Office, Dr Beverly Malone, general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, Carole Fry, nurse advisor on communicable diseases, Department of Health and Dr Helen Glenister, director of safer practice and nursing/deputy chief executive, National Patient Safety Agency.

CLEAN UP HOSPITALS, SAYS TV AGGIE

Link: Mirror.co.uk

         TV's queen of clean Aggie Mackenzie has complained to hospital bosses about poor hygiene standards. The host of Channel 4's How Clean Is Your House? was stunned at a number of errors when her father was ill at Raigmore Hospital, Inverness. Aggie, 49, said: "I saw stuff going on there that I thought, 'This is so wrong'." This included seeing a nurse adjust her dad's drip without sterilising her hands. "Those nurses couldn't have been kinder or nicer to my dad, but it's about spreading infection. MRSA is so avoidable," Aggie said after this week's TV and Radio Industries' Club awards

Evaluating Strategies to Improve Patient Outcomes: Community-Acquired and Nosocomial MRSA

Link: Evaluating Strategies

Evaluating Strategies to Improve Patient Outcomes: Community-Acquired and Nosocomial MRSA CME Faculty: Kamal M.F. Itani, MD, FACS; Lena M. Napolitano, MD, FACS, FCCP, FCCM; Dennis L. Stevens, MD, PhD; CME Reviewer: Andrew W. Urban, MD

This CME activity is based on transcripts and slides of presentations as delivered by the faculty at the "Evaluating Strategies to Improve Patient Outcomes: Community-Acquired and Nosocomial MRSA" symposium held at the San Francisco Marriott in San Francisco, CA on October 18, 2005.

Click the link above for more

Visiting times cut to aid infection fight

Link: Visiting times

     Visiting times at Derby's hospitals could be restricted as part of a three-pronged attack to cut the risk of infections such as the deadly virus MRSA. Managers are considering introducing set visiting times and reducing the number of visitors per patient at Derbyshire Royal Infirmary, Derby City General Hospital and Derbyshire Children's Hospital. They believe the move will help staff keep wards clean and will also reduce the amount of germs brought into the hospital. The proposal is part of a larger scheme to maintain the trust's record of having the lowest MRSA rates in the country. The trust had 34 cases of MRSA between October 2004 and October last year.

Hospitals Enrolled in the IHI’s 100,000 Lives Campaign Show that Cases of VAP Can Drop to Zero

Link: Infection Control Today

   

Important story this - click the link above for the list of hospitals. The key here is that  they decided they could solve the problem and they have. (MRSA is a major VAP linked infection)

     The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) announced today that 14 hospitals enrolled in its 100,000 Lives Campaign have had no cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) for one year or more. VAP is a lung infection that can develop in patients dependent on mechanical ventilators to help them breathe. It typically occurs in intensive care units. Fifteen percent of patients on ventilators develop this serious complication.  VAP is a leading killer among all hospital-acquired infections, causing an estimated 26,000 deaths every year. Launched in December 2004, the 100,000 Lives Campaign is the first-ever national initiative that aims to save a large and specified number of lives by a certain date (June 2006). The Campaign asks participating hospitals to implement six evidence-based interventions, one of which targets VAPs. A series of steps, such as raising the head of the bed to an angle of 30 degrees to 45 degrees, and making sure to wean patients off the ventilators as quickly as possible, can cut the deadly infection rate dramatically and, in the case of these pioneering hospitals, to zero. The following hospitals report that they have eliminated VAP for one year or more, either throughout the hospital or in specific intensive care units:

Chlorhexidine Gluconate to Cleanse Patients in a Medical Intensive Care Unit

Link: Arch Intern Med

   Background  Historically, methods of interrupting pathogen transmission have focused on improving health care workers' adherence to recommended infection control practices. An adjunctive approach may be to use source control (eg, to decontaminate patients' skin). Methods  We performed a prospective sequential-group single-arm clinical trial in a teaching hospital's medical intensive care unit from October 2002 to December 2003. We bathed or cleansed 1787 patients and assessed them for acquisition of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE). We performed a nested study of 86 patients with VRE colonization and obtained culture specimens from 758 environmental surfaces and 529 health care workers' hands. All patients were cleansed daily with the procedure specific to the study period as follows: period 1, soap and water baths; period 2, cleansing with cloths saturated with 2% chlorhexidine gluconate; and period 3, cloth cleansing without chlorhexidine. We measured colonization of patient skin by VRE, health care worker hand or environmental surface contamination by VRE, and patient acquisition of VRE rectal colonization. Results  Compared with soap and water baths, cleansing patients with chlorhexidine-saturated cloths resulted in 2.5 log10 less colonies of VRE on patients' skin and less VRE contamination of health care workers' hands (risk ratio [RR], 0.6; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.4-0.8) and environmental surfaces (RR, 0.3; 95% CI, 0.2-0.5). The incidence of VRE acquisition decreased from 26 colonizations per 1000 patient-days to 9 per 1000 patient-days (RR, 0.4; 95% CI, 0.1-0.9). For all measures, effectiveness of cleansing with nonmedicated cloths was similar to that of soap and water baths. Conclusion  Cleansing patients with chlorhexidine-saturated cloths is a simple, effective strategy to reduce VRE contamination of patients' skin, the environment, and health care workers' hands and to decrease patient acquisition of VRE.

Universal Patient Disinfection as a Tool for Infection Control: Rub-A-Dub-Dub, No Need for a Tub, February 13, 2006, Peterson and Singh 166 (3): 274

Link: Arch Intern Med

    The management of emerging and reemerging infections in today's health care practice is daunting, to say the least. We are all aware of the seemingly constant recognition of new diseases, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome–associated coronavirus1 and avian influenza,2 as well as the introduction of new faces on old pathogens, exemplified by multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumanii3 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa4 and community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).5 The spread of these and other infectious diseases is the result of 3 interrelated factors: the relationship(s) between microorganisms, their hosts, and the environment.6 Critical tools for management of health care–associated infections are comprehensive infection-control practices that are often insufficiently followed.7 In this issue of the ARCHIVES, Vernon and colleagues8 evaluate a novel intervention with the focus on interrupting the host as a reservoir for contamination of the environment and health care workers to halt .

Cleaning Course wins Award

Link: News & Star.

   A PIONEERING Carlisle College course aimed at helping health workers to wipe out the deadly MRSA superbug has won national recognition. Helen Gudgeon, head of health and humanities, travelled to Westminster with colleague Carolann Armitage to receive an award from Skills Minister Phil Hope. The college took top prize for its delivery of the ASET Level 2 certificate in the control of infection and contamination. Henry Elliott, one of the judges, said: “I am delighted to award this prize to Carlisle College for their work in keeping Cumbria bug-free.”

Nail salons spreading MRSA

Link: ajc.com

   On Friday, the Dallas County Department of Health and Human Services issued a warning about MRSA infections picked up in contaminated whirlpool footbaths at some area nail salons. Despite high-profile attacks of MRSA, scientists had not been able to say exactly how widespread the bug might be. Most of the time, people carry staph bacteria in their noses without knowing it. Only when it slips through breaks in the skin does MRSA announce itself. It concerns doctors not only because of its potential to cause disease, but also because it resists many traditional treatments. This month, in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, researchers from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report that about 32 percent of the American population harbors S. aureus. About 1 percent of that staph appears to be MRSA. That would mean between 1.2 million and 3.8 million people carry the more dangerous form.

Child ban to prevent bug spread

Link: icBirmingham

    Children under the age of 12 are being stopped from visiting a hospital without permission in a bid to reduce the spread of infections.

An adult must also accompany youngsters on visits to Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley under the new rules.

Other changes are a strict four-hour visiting period in the evening and only two visitors per patient at a time.

A spokeswoman said the hospital was concerned with the needs of patients and wanted to maintain high standards.

She said: "We have the lowest MRSA rates in Birmingham and the Black Country and we would like to keep it that way."

Hospital changing facilities alert

Link: Scotsman.com News

   A lack of changing facilities in some hospitals could be increasing the spread of superbugs such as MRSA.

One Scottish health board has already been advised its changing provision is not acceptable and that staff are resorting to changing in toilets.

On Wednesday a leading microbiologist said the situation could discourage staff from exercising proper infection control and lead to the spread of MRSA and other hospital acquired infections (HAIs).

In a letter presented to NHS Grampian's health board, the area partnership forum, which advises the board on clinical matters, criticised its lack of changing facilities.

The group said: "At the moment many staff have no access to changing facilities and have to use toilet facilities. This is not acceptable for either staff or patients, due to the increased risk of cross-infection.

"This issue has been raised previously but has obviously slipped down the agenda. Adverse comments from the public have resulted from this situation, which is obviously undesirable for NHS Grampian."

Microbiologist Professor Hugh Pennington said: "The problem is that if you don't provide proper changing facilities for staff but expect them to wear the proper protective clothing then you are not giving them much of an incentive.

Eire minister calls for shorter visiting hours

Link: eircom net

   HOSPITALS have been urged to restrict visiting hours in a bid to clean up their act and fight infections.

Health Minister Mary Harney said the practice of people visiting hospital from early morning until late at night was putting pressure on staff, patients and infection controlmeasures.

Speaking in Dublin at a Clean Hospital Summit - a conference on combating infections - she cited the case of one group coming on a visit with a McDonald's takeaway. Stephen McMahon, of the Irish Patients' Association, joint organisers of the conference, said last week he was contacted by a patient who needed treatment but left A&E because they were unhappy with standards of hygiene.

He also deplored reports that 'MRSA' was written in a sign over a patient's bed in a Dublin hospital.

Infection Control Education Institute: Webinars

Link: Infection Control Education Institute

   Webinars, live seminars held online, give participants an opportunity to participate in an interactive event wherever they have access to the internet and a phone.

The Infection Control Education Institute Webinar Series on Preventing and Controlling Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs) will offer a free Webinar the last Tuesday of every month in 2006.

Upcoming Webinars:

Title: A Primer on Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAIs)
Time: Tuesday, February 28, 2-3pm Eastern time
Cost: FREE

This comprehensive seminar is designed for general ward, operating room, sterile processing, healthcare facility, environmental services departments and public-health professionals. Arm yourself with the science-based information necessary to combat HAIs in your facility.

Topics to be covered include:

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      What are HAIs
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      What they cost in dollars and lives lost
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      How they can be controlled and prevented

Click the link above for more information

Hospital Hygiene to provide dedicated discussion forum

Link: Hospital Hygiene

   Hospital Hygiene, a new conference and exhibition for healthcare professionals, will take place at the ExCeL exhibition halls in London from 16-17 March 2006.

Backed by the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA), Department of Health and the Health Protection Agency, Hospital Hygiene 2006 is the only national event in the UK specifically focused on preventing the spread of bacteria and hospital acquired infections.

The event is designed for everyone involved in keeping the UK’s hospitals clean, from infection control nurses and modern matrons to hospital directors and executives, communications managers, purchasing/finance managers and contract cleaning companies.

Featuring key speakers from the Department of Health, Infection Control Nurses Association and National Audit Office, the conference programme will provide delegates with a live forum to debate infection control issues, from MRSA to the management of contractors and motivation of nursing staff. By attending, staff will add to their continual professional development and enhance their practical skills. Discounts are available to NHS and private healthcare organisations.

Separate from the conference will be a “Ward At Work” interactive seminar area which visitors can attend free of charge to update their knowledge and learn new practical skills. There visitors can learn about new cleaning policies, hospital cleaning, new technologies, decontamination, waste issues and hand washing.

Delegates attending the Hospital Hygiene Conference 2006 will also have free access to the Hospital Hygiene Exhibition where they can see a wide range of products and services including: infection control equipment, decontamination technologies, medical devices and facility service providers.

Red Tape scandal delays infection control

Link: CDR Weekly, Vol 16 no 01: News.

The Department of Health has published a report produced on their behalf by the Health Protection Agency on infection control information technology (ICIT) implementation and evaluation (IEA)(1,2).

The ICIT/IAE project was undertaken to implement and further evaluate the three software packages recommended by an earlier project (3). The principal aim of the ICIT/IAE project was to provide recommendations about the use of infection control software to support local infection control teams and infection control practices in NHS Trusts. The scope of the project was to implement and then evaluate three infection control packages for local use. Each product was tested in three NHS Trusts (nine Trusts in total).

Eight out of the nine Trusts experienced delays during implementation. The Trusts that volunteered for the project recorded lead times for implementation of between two weeks and twelve months. Two were still on-going 18 months after the start of the project. Broadly, both trust and company issues contributed to the excessive implementation times in eight of the nine pilot Trusts. Trusts and suppliers need to agree on a timetable, the roles and availability of key players.

Aussies seek benchmark

Link: HighWire Press -- Medline Abstract.

This is a scary little item. Scary if you're in the hospital with a 56% infection rate.

Background: Infra-inguinal revascularization surgery remains one of the most commonly performed major vascular procedures in contemporary practice. Surgical site infections (SSI) are a common cause of morbidity in this patient cohort and generate high rates of limb loss and mortality when vascular graft involvement occurs. An overall reduction in North American SSI has been attributed to the establishment of national benchmarks. A comparable Australasian benchmark does not exist. The purpose of the present study was to assess the methods used by Australasian vascular units to determine SSI rates and to instigate the development of an acceptable benchmark. Methods: A structured questionnaire pertaining to SSI after infra-inguinal revascularization surgery was sent to 26 Australasian vascular units. Data requested included the number and type of lower extremity revascularization procedures performed. Units were also asked to report the methods employed for defining and detecting wound infections and to document their SSI rate. The incidence of SSI causation by methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was also sought. Results: The total number of revascularizations performed annually varied from 28 to 179 between units. The SSI rates ranged from 0 to 38%. The incidence of MRSA involvement varied from <1% to 56%. The SSI surveillance methodology varied considerably between units. Conclusions: The present study confirms the significant incidence of SSI after infra-inguinal revascularization surgery in contemporary vascular practice. Standardized definitions and surveillance protocols are required to facilitate inter- and intrahospital comparisons. A possible benchmark infection rate may be 10-20%.

Keeping Ahead In The Battle Against Infectious Diseases

Link: Keeping Ahead

This is a a helpful article for medical proffesionals - click the link above for more.

How can we keep ahead in the battle against infectious diseases? The current threat of avian flu has sent panic around the globe and even in hospitals, where you might hope to be safe from disease, MRSA is a cause for concern in the health service. Sure-fire curses for these conditions seem a long way off and governments, policymakers and the public are often at a loss to know how to respond.

However, a multidisciplinary team of researchers at The University of Nottingham believe they have the answer. Surprisingly, it's not in the laboratory, but somewhere else entirely. They have recently embarked on a research project to investigate whether the art of communication could hold the key.

Lead researcher Dr Brigitte Nerlich, in the University's Institute for the Study of Genetics, Biorisks and Society (IGBiS) said: “We know that people are worried, but how we communicate about these risks is crucial.

“How we disseminate news about outbreaks, how we learn about techniques to prevent the spread of the infection and how governments communicate with one another and with the public can all make the difference between sheer panic and being able to contain and control diseases.”

SUPERBUG OAP'S MOVE SPARKS INFECTION FEAR

Link: The Sunday Mail

A HOSPITAL patient with the superbug MRSA was moved to a bed alongside other patients because of a staffing crisis.

The elderly woman had been put in an isolation ward after catching the bug following an operation at the Southern General, Glasgow.

But last month she was put back on an ordinary ward because of weekend staffing problems.

Last night, campaigners and MSPs said the move put other patients at risk of infection and demanded an urgent inquiry.

SNP health spokeswoman Shona Robison said: "The guidelines are clear on not moving infected patients from one area to another. I understand there are often problems with bed shortages and resources.

"But when infections such as MRSA are so prevalent, protocols must be adhered to if we are to stem the risk of infecting others."

Leading voice lays down MRSA gauntlet

Link: HighWire Press -- Medline Abstract.

  This is an article from a leading UK figure in MRSA research. Medical professionals who can access the full feature should find it provocative. He clearly favours patient isolation.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) continues to evolve. Thus far, efforts to control the spread of MRSA in the UK have failed, resulting in a great deal of public and political concern. New guidelines advocate a much more active "seek and destroy" policy, but the causes of the epidemic go back 30 years to the start of an extended period of disinvestment in the national health service. Consequently, a multifaceted approach is needed now, one that includes a huge investment in infrastructure and facilities for patient isolation, cleaning and disinfection of equipment, laboratory diagnosis of MRSA, antibiotic stewardship, and training of medical and nursing staff.

New ward rules in MRSA crackdown

Link: icBirmingham

FAMILIES and friends seeing patients at two Birmingham hospitals will be warned how to behave in a crackdown on superbug MRSA. Patients will only be allowed up to three visitors at a time in Queen Elizabeth and Selly Oak Hospitals when new tougher visiting rules are agreed this week. Nurses will also be given carte blanche to advise guests how to act, children under 16 will only be allowed on wards with an adult and stricter visiting hours of two slots a day from 2pm to 4pm and 6.30pm to 8.30pm will be launched. A consultation with patient governors and staff at University Hospital Trust, which runs the two hospitals, showed overwhelming support for the move.

Uncontrolled Infections Leave U.S. Hospitals Unprepared for Avian Flu and Bioterrorism Events

Link: Infection Control Today

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- If avian flu wings its way to the United States and changes genetically into a disease that spreads rapidly from person to person, the death toll would depend largely on what hospitals do when the first victims come in for treatment, according to a study by the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths (RID). If hospitals have effective infection control measures in place, they will prevent avian flu from spreading to other patients who did not come in with it. If not, bird flu would race through hospitals, infecting patients and staff. “Shoddy infection control is poor preparation for flu and poor homeland security as well,” cautioned Betsy McCaughey, RID chairman and former lieutenant governor of New York. The report, “Unnecessary Deaths,” co-sponsored by the NationalCenter for Policy Analysis (NCPA), highlights the grave consequences of poor infection control in most American hospitals. “One out of every 20 patients gets an infection in the hospital,” McCaughey said. “Infections that have been nearly eradicated in some countries, such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, are raging through hospitals in the United States.”

Employee-Led Effort Dramatically Reduces Rates of Hospital Super Bug

Link: Infection Control Today

Cooper's study involved two intensive care units at a hospital in northern England. The hospital had successfully lowered its incidence of MRSA during the previous two years using traditional MRSA improvement strategies, such as revised protocols, patient screenings and intensive monitoring. As part of the behavioral management approach, the ICU employees identified the issues to address -- hand washing, patient charts and documentation. Also, with the help of special training, the employees implemented a daily monitoring plan and created special checklists for employees regarding the three sets of behavior. Each day during the study an employee would monitor the staff for 20 minutes, evaluating their attention to the three categories of behavior. The wards employed around 140 people, with the study including doctors, nurses, healthcare assistants, administrative members of the care team, and visitors (physicians, hospital staff, family members, and friends). The research was supported by Huntsman Petrochemicals Ltd. and PX Ltd., based in Teesside, England.

Finance Pressure means MRSA just a fact of life

Link: News - Leeds Today:

A nurse claims that conditions in Leeds Trust hospitals are so bad she would never let her mother be admitted. The experienced staff nurse, who agreed to speak out on condition of anonymity because she still works for the trust, has worked for Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust for many years. And she claims the financial pressures currently facing the organisation are so acute that lives are being put at risk with the superbug MRSA now "just a fact of life." And the trust, which runs Leeds General Infirmary and St James's, admitted that the Royal College of Nursing had also raised a concerns with management which the YEP understands centre on the impact which cash shortages are having on hospital staff. Her warning comes on the day the granddaughter of a Leeds woman who was killed by MRSA takes her fight to Downing Street. Caroline Jones was due to join a delegation from campaign group MRSA Action UK and present a 6,000-name petition to the heart of government calling for investment in better and safer nursing care for patient.

Heterotrophic Bacteria and Filamentous Fungi Isolated from a Hospital Water Distribution System

Link: Indoor and Built Environment.

In recent years, hospital infections caused by opportunist micro-organisms in immunosupressed patients groups have become increasingly important. These micro-organisms grow easily in water distribution systems even to the extent of producing bio-film. In the present study the aim was to determine microbial populations in water samples collected from the distribution system of a big hospital. Water samples were collected from one hundred different points around the water distribution system in different sections of the hospital. To analyse the water a membrane filter method was used. In eighty-four samples heterotrophic bacteria were isolated. The most frequent bacteria determined were Bacillusspp. (77%), Bacillus cereus (11%), Pseudomonasspp. (5%) and Staphylococcus spp. (4%). In fifteen samples more than one species of bacteria were isolated. In fifty-one samples, sixteen species of fungi were isolated, the most frequent being Penicilliumspp. (24%), Aspergillusspp. (8%) and Acremoniumspp. (5%). In thirteen samples more than one type of fungi was determined. In only six samples was no growth of fungi or bacteria observed. Over all the one hundred samples the counts of heterotrophic bacteria were not significantly correlated with the filamentous fungi counts (rs 012, p 0.05). Differences in the level of isolation or the concentration of bacteria and fungi between water from three old buildings and water from four new buildings were not significant (p 0.05).

Hospital-Acquired Infections Raise Costs for Taxpayers

Link: Hospital-Acquired Infections Raise Costs for Taxpayers, Federal Health Insurance Programs, According to Pennsylvania Report.

Medicare and Medicaid were billed for about 76% of the 11,668 cases of hospital-acquired infections in Pennsylvania hospitals in 2004, with charges totaling nearly $1.4 billion for the government programs, according to a study released on Thursday by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports (Fahy, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 11/17). PHC4 in July released a study finding that hospital-acquired infections last year accounted for 1,793 deaths and $2 billion in charges in Pennsylvania. PHC4 used billing data and reports from Pennsylvania hospitals to determine the rate of infections (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 7/13). According to the new report, hospitals billed Medicare an additional $1 billion to treat hospital-acquired infections in 7,870 patients, while Medicaid was billed an additional $371.6 million for infections in 1,028 patients. Commercial insurers were billed an additional $603.8 million for such cases. However, the Philadelphia Inquirer notes that hospitals "collect significantly less from Medicare, Medicaid and insurers than the amount billed for care." Nevertheless, the PHC4 report "suggests hospital-acquired infections add billions of dollars each year to the nation's actual cost of health care," the Inquirer reports. PHC4 Executive Director Marc Volavka said, "The financial toll of potentially preventable hospital-acquired infections is staggering."

Clinical Practice & Infectious Disease

Link: AORN Online: Clinical Practice.

The article linked to above is quite technical but is helpful both to patient advocates and proffesional medical staff.

The following proposed recommended practices for prevention of transmissible infections were developed by the AORN Recommended Practices Committee. It is being presented for review and comment at this time. The AORN Recommended Practices Committee is interested in receiving comments on this proposal from members and others. These recommended practices are intended as achievable recommendations representing what is believed to be an optimal level of practice. Policies and procedures will reflect variations in practice settings and/or clinical situations that determine the degree to which the recommended practices can be implemented. AORN recognizes the numerous types of settings in which perioperative nurses practice. These recommended practices are intended as guidelines adaptable to various practice settings. These practice settings include traditional Operating Rooms, ambulatory surgery centers, physicians' offices, cardiac catheterization suites, endoscopy suites, radiology departments, and all other areas where operative and other invasive procedures may be performed.

Progress on MRSA safety 'patchy'

Link: BBC NEWS

Hospitals in England are making patchy progress towards controlling hospital superbugs, a study says. The Patients Association found that fewer than half of doctors are routinely using hand gels despite MRSA guidelines advising them to do so. And the survey of 229 NHS staff working in infection control said there were worrying gaps in patient screening and the provision of cleaning services. The government said more needed to be done, but measures were in place. MRSA is linked to nearly 1,000 deaths a year and is consistently reported to be one of the public's major concerns about the health service. But the Patients Association found that only 47% of doctors - 31% in London - always used hand gels.

Health chief launches war on superbug

Link: Health chief launches war on superbug.

PATIENTS will only be allowed two visitors at a time and staff will be banned from wearing uniforms outside hospital as part of new MRSA controls. The East Lancashire Hospital's NHS Trust's new policy of "two's company, three's a crowd" will be "enforced robustly" after a prog-ramme of awareness to highlight the new ruling. The principle is part of a five-point plan, spearheaded by chief executive Jo Cubbon, in a bid to combat superbugs such as MRSA in hospital wards. The plan, which has been welcomed by the family of MRSA victim David Short -- who caught MRSA in Blackburn's Queen's Park Hospital -- and follows an Evening Telegraph investigation into breaches of existing guidelines.

The burden of disease

Link: CDR Weekly, Vol 15 no 43: News.

The Health Protection Agency has published Health Protection in the 21st Century - Understanding the Burden of Disease; preparing for the future which attempts to identify and quantify the burden of disease across the broad health protection spectrum, from infections to environmental hazards. The study builds on work which has quantified the burden of infectious diseases (an annual treatment cost of approximately �6 billion) applying the same principles to assessing the burden of non-infectious diseases associated with radiation, chemicals, poisons, and pollution. The report is the first stage in the process of quantifying the totality of the burden of disease, particularly in the area of environmentally linked non-infectious disease. The report full report can be accessed at the Agency's website at:

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NHS Staff Get On-Line to Reduce Infections

Link: NHS Staff Get On-Line to Reduce Infections.

Help to reduce infections in hospital is just a click away thanks to a new web-based manual developed for use in hospitals in North Central London. A new on-line Infection Control Manual, developed by Dr Geoff Scott, Director of Infection Prevention and Control at UCLH NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH), went live at UCLH, the Whittington and North Middlesex hospitals on the 31st October 2005, the start of the National Infection Control Week. Its searchable database provides staff with a wealth of knowledge about preventing and controlling a whole range of infections including rubella, tuberculosis, SARS, avian ‘flu’ and MRSA. It contains policies and instructions for staff on how to deal with disinfection, disposal of waste and decontamination of equipment. Staff will also be able to print out posters and information for patients to remind everyone about the need for good hand hygiene.

NHS kills 34,000 a year

Link: The Sun Online

AS many as 34,000 patients a year may be dying from NHS blunders, a bombshell report reveals today. And the National Audit Office study suggests the toll could even be as high as 80,000. Figures do not include the estimated 5,000 deaths from hospital infections such as MRSA. Health chiefs admitted nearly a million patients were accidentally harmed. Half of these could have been prevented if health bosses had learnt from past mistakes, said the NAO.

No gifts and wear clean clothes, ward visitors told

Link: Scotsman.com News

HOSPITAL visitors were warned yesterday that taking in gifts for sick relatives might be helping the spread of MRSA. At the launch of a campaign to reduce the levels of the superbug in Scotland's hospitals, experts even said that people should think twice about visiting unless their clothes are clean. The Wipe It Out campaign - launched by the Royal College of Nursing - includes new advice for staff and visitors in an effort to reduce the high rate of infection. MRSA is thought to kill about 400 people a year in Scotland. Susan Watt, the RCN Scotland education and clinical effectiveness adviser, said too many gifts or flowers around patients can harbour dust and make it difficult to clean.

Fresh drive to wipe out superbug

Link: BBC NEWS

Health chiefs and nurses in NHS Lothian are joining forces in a new effort to combat the MRSA hospital superbug. Administrators and the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) in Scotland will be working together over the coming months to try to tackle the bug. Information packs on infection control and prevention will be given to staff. Leaflets and posters aimed at patients and visitors will be distributed in a further attempt to raise awareness of the problem. Health board chairman Brian Cavanagh said: "This is a very serious issue affecting too many patients within the NHS. "It is completely unacceptable for patients to become ill when they have entered a hospital or care home to improve their health and wellbeing."

Big crowd for MRSA seminar

Link: Hampstead and Highgate Express.

MORE than a hundred patient and public members of the University College London Hospital trust turned up for an MRSA seminar last week. The seminar, MRSA And Infection - the facts, was held to discuss the real facts about MRSA. The subjects under discussion included what MRSA was, how the disease spread and how patients and visitors could help ensure the continued decline of infection rates at the trust.

Hospital bed blow to battle on MRSA

Link: Hospital bed blow to battle on MRSA.

THE fight against killer superbug MRSA is being hampered by a severe shortage of hospital beds across Worcestershire. New Government figures show that most of the county's hospital trusts are overusing beds, increasing the risk of patients being infected. Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust - which runs the Worcestershire Royal Hospital, the Alexandra Hospital in Redditch and Kidderminster Hospital - has one of the highest bed occupancy rates in the country, with an average of 741 out of 780 - or 95 per cent - in use at all times in 2004/5. The Department of Health's target occupancy rate is 85 per cent or below, a figure calculated to allow enough time to get hospital-acquired infections under control.

Less visits = less infections?

Link: