Quarter of NHS trusts short of hygiene standards
There are 24 core NHS standards that cover issues from governance to clinical effectiveness
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Monday, 18, Jun 2007 02:24
A quarter of NHS trusts have admitted they are unable to meet standards included in a compulsory hygiene code, according to the Healthcare Commission (HC).
In total, 99 of the 394 trusts said they could not meet cleanliness regulations that were brought in to halt the spread of hospital superbugs such as MRSA.
The statistics were revealed after the boards of all 394 NHS trusts declared whether their organisation met the necessary level of performance during the year to March 31st, 2007.
Concerns about hospital superbugs are high; earlier this year the Health Protection Agency revealed that there has been an eight per cent rise in cases of C-diff in patients over 65 years old in England since 2005. From October to December 2006 there were 1,542 cases of MRSA reported in England.
Checks on the accuracy of the information provided to the HC will be carried out by the commission.
HC chief executive Anna Walker denied that the NHS was becoming less safe for patients.
"We want to applaud trusts that have put their hands up and declared non compliance in some areas," said HC chief executive Anna Walker.
"This shows boards really examining their own performance. That is the action of an honest and responsible board that wants to make improvements and get these standards in place for patients. The first step to sorting out a problem is recognising you have one."
The commission pointed out that 40 per cent of the 394 trusts in England were meeting all 24 core NHS standards - an increase of 34 per cent on last year's results.
There has also been a nine per cent increase to 85 per cent in the number of trusts meeting 90 per cent of the standards set, according to the healthcare watchdog.
"NHS organisations will be looking closely at the today's 'interim' results and focusing particularly on the areas where compliance has slipped - namely in the hygiene code and on dignity and respect," said Dr Gill Morgan, chief executive of the NHS Confederation.
"These two particular issues are major priorities for both the NHS and patients and it is vitally important that we work towards reaching full compliance on standards in these areas over the coming months."
Commenting on the information shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said: "The one in four yet to meet the code need to realise that it is an imperative not an option."
Liberal Democrats health spokesman Norman Lamb added: "It is wholly unacceptable that one in four hospitals is still failing to meet required hygiene standards
"There has to be a zero tolerance approach to tackling superbugs. It is shocking that after countless government initiatives the number of hospitals failing to protect patients from these infections has doubled."
He also called for failures to comply with hygiene regulations to be treated as "gross misconduct".
The Healthcare Commission has labelled 15 trusts as "weak", for failing on at least 14 standards. These are Royal Cornwall hospitals; Buckinghamshire hospitals; North Devon Healthcare; Cornwall Partnership; Surrey and Sussex Healthcare; Yorkshire ambulance service; and the primary care trusts in Eastern and Coastal Kent, Cumbria, East and North Hertfordshire, West Hertfordshire, Sutton and Merton, North Lancashire, Devon, Wiltshire and Surrey.