Clean bill of health for hospital bosses (From Times Series)

Clean bill of health for hospital bosses

8:00am Wednesday 31st December 2008

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Hygiene levels at Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust have been praised by an independent health watchdog only 18 months after it was put on notice to improve.

The trust was found to have been compliant with all four hygiene targets, or duties, assessed in the most recent round of inspections by the Healthcare Commission.

The hospitals were judged on the quality of their management systems for:

• infection prevention and control,
• cleanliness,
• isolation facilities and,
• the administration of antibiotics.

Trust chief executive Averil Dongworth said: “We are delighted to receive such a positive report from the Healthcare Commission.

“This demonstrates the huge amount of progress we have made in the last 18 months.

“That in itself is a testament to all the hard work by all our staff, which has resulted in our MRSA and Clostridium difficile infection reduction targets now below our planned position for reduction.”

In June, the trust became the first in the country to be issued with an order to improve after the Com-mission discovered serious breaches of the hygiene code, brought in by the Government in October last year.

Notices are issued only when breaches of the code, which outlines compulsory duties to prevent and manage healthcare-associated infections such as MRSA and Clostridium difficile, are considered to be serious.

Between April 2007 and March 2008 the trust had 53 cases of MRSA bacteraemia and 227 cases of Clostridium difficile. Since April it has had 27 cases of MRSA and 61 cases of Clostridium difficile.

The most recent report, published on December 19, praised the hospital for its cleanliness, staff knowledge and commitment and understanding of infection prevention.

Ms Dongworth said: “Beating healthcare-associated infections will remain our highest priorities. All staff will continue to work very hard to provide the highest possible standards of care.

“This result will reassure our patients that we are doing everything possible to tackle healthcare-associated infection.”

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