10 February 2006
Unison has called on NHS trusts to employ more cleaners after it was revealed that around half of hospitals are falling behind in efforts to cut infections with the MRSA 'superbug'.
Health minister Jane Kennedy said she was disappointed that the incidence of infection with the drug-resistant bacterium had risen to 3,580 in April–September 2005 compared with 3,525 a year earlier.
The 20 trusts most likely to miss the target of cutting infections by 50% by 2008 will be visited by teams of hygiene experts. Three trusts — Sandwell, Northumbria and Aintree — had volunteered to be the first to receive help, although they did not have the greatest problems.
But Unison's head of health Karen Jennings urged trusts to get 'back to basics', saying: 'Screening, “swat” teams and targets are all well and good, but cleaners are the frontline troops in the fight against MRSA.
'We need cleaning staff to be part of the infection control team, give them the tools to do the job and under the direct control of ward staff, that way we will begin to see real progress in meeting these targets.'
John Adler, chief executive of Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals Trust, said its infection rates had dropped by a third in the past six months.
'Around two in 10,000 patients develop MRSA at the trust and we would like to halve that by the end of this year. It is made more difficult by the age of many of our buildings and the resulting lack of isolation facilities but we want to do everything we can. This prompted us to volunteer for DoH support.'
PFfeb2006
