Drop in MRSA and C diff at St Helier

5:23pm Monday 28th April 2008

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The number of cases of the deadly hospital acquired infection MRSA has dropped by 60 per cent in Epsom and St Helier hospitals, according to the latest figures.

The statistics from the Health Protection Agency also showed a 25 per cent reduction in cases of C diff, although the way figures for that infection are compiled has changed so the percentage fall may not be accurate.

"The commitment of staff and volunteers across the trust has helped us achieve so much, but we are not complacent and will continue to do all we possibly can in our fight against healthcare acquired infections."

Chief executive Samantha Jones

The figures, which are released quarterly, showed there were eight cases of MRSA found in patients in hospitals run by Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust between October and December 2007.

That was almost 60 per cent less than the 19 reported in the previous quarter.

Cases of C diff dropped from 122 between July to September to 94 between October to December 2007 - a reduction of just under 25 per cent.

Samantha Jones, chief executive of the trust, said: "We are very encouraged by the latest figures from the Health Protection Agency.

"The commitment of staff and volunteers across the trust has helped us achieve so much, but we are not complacent and will continue to do all we possibly can in our fight against healthcare acquired infections.

"This is an important issue for patients, visitors and staff and, by working together, we know we can further reduce the number of cases of healthcare acquired infections we see each year."

A £300,000 deep clean of both hospitals has just finished and training given to staff about infection control has been increased. The trust has also launched a major hand hygiene awareness campaign aimed at staff, patients and visitors.

Dr Georgia Duckworth, head of the agency's healthcare-associated infection and antimicrobial resistance department, said: "The NHS has faced a great challenge in turning around the seemingly unstoppable rise in MRSA bloodstream infections that we saw throughout the 1990s.

"The substantial decreases seen in recent quarters clearly demonstrate the huge efforts made by our NHS colleagues to combat these infections."