Superbug infection rates to be monitored more closely

new measures to combat outbreaks include hospital-by-hospital reporting

By Stephen Christie

Published:

KEEN INTEREST: Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Colin Rennie

Health boards in Scotland must report infection rates on a hospital-by-hospital basis under a raft of measures unveiled by the Scottish Government in Aberdeen yesterday.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon also announced that health boards must report how hospitals are complying with hand hygiene and cleaning requirements.

And findings must be published every two months for discussion in public at board meetings, she revealed at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary.

Infections, including the MRSA and Clostridium Difficile superbugs, are currently reported on a health board basis rather than individually by each hospital.

Yesterday’s announcement is intended to offer “unprecedented transparency” about hospitals and infection rates.

The new infection report cards were a key recommendation of an expert report following the outbreak of C diff at the Vale of Leven hospital in Dunbartonshire last year.

A police probe continues into the deaths of 18 people linked to that outbreak.

Commenting yesterday, Ms Sturgeon said: “I think the reality is we’re not going to completely eradicate infections from our hospitals as some infections come in from the community. My obligation and the obligation of everyone who works in the health service, however, is to drive down infection rates as much as possible.

“There is no single way of doing that, we have to do a whole range of things.

“I believe an important element is the public having the right information so they have the ability to make sure their own health board, and indeed their local hospital, is taking all the right steps.”

Labour health spokeswoman Cathy Jamieson said yesterday’s announcement was old news. “There is nothing new in this announcement, which the Scottish Government originally made in November,” she said.

“Nicola Sturgeon’s complacency about C diff is unacceptable and she needs to take much tougher action.”

Lib Dem health spokesman Ross Finnie added: “While welcoming this announcement, I am disappointed it was not made immediately after the (Vale of Leven) report was published in November.”

During yesterday’s visit Ms Sturgeon also saw a demonstration of ARI’s electronic bed management system which may be used in future to track infections and improve infection control.

The system allows staff to view in real-time how many hospital beds are occupied, giving managers and clinical staff up-to-date capacity information. This ensures patients are admitted and discharged without delay.

Conservative public health spokesman Jackson Carlaw said: “An electronic bed management system, as successfully piloted at ARI, is an ideal way of improving the situation,” he added.

“Now that Nicola Sturgeon has seen the system, I trust she will support our calls for an early and more extensive national pilot of the system.”

Ms Sturgeon also used yesterday’s visit to open officially a £4.5million cardiac catheterisation unit which provides a range of specialised heart procedures.