ERI worst in Scotland for killer superbugs as C.diff deaths rise

Published on Saturday 8 August 2009 11:08

DEATHS among patients suffering from C.diff have nearly doubled at the ERI in the last year, making it the worst in Scotland for superbug fatalities.

Figures have shown that, despite a raft of measures, C.diff was a factor in the deaths of 31 people in 2008 in the city's main hospital, compared to 17 the year before, with a further 13 linked to MRSA.

Traditionally, the ERI hasn't even been the worst in the Lothians for superbug death, let alone Scotland. Over the years Liberton Hospital has had more deaths, with the Western General also recording more fatalities.

The figures will provide a major headache for NHS Lothian bosses who have brought in a number of steps to try and reduce superbugs.

Hand hygiene has been a major offensive, with cleanliness champions being appointed to every ward and investment in advanced cleaning machines.

And despite the spike in cases at Little France, the health board's director of public health, Dr Alison McCallum insisted they were moving in the right direction.

She said: "Reducing healthcare-associated infection is a top priority for NHS Lothian.

"Every case of C.diff is followed up systematically, we always try to learn lessons and minimise the risk of future infections.

"Where someone with C.diff dies, even if it is not the cause of death, the lead consultant undertakes a detailed case review.

"C.diff is circulating in the community and it is not possible in some cases to pinpoint exactly where it was acquired. However we have reduced the number of cases in our area in recent years and are on track to achieve our target of a 30 per cent reduction in C.diff infections by 2011 and a 40 per cent reduction in MRSA by the end of March next year."

The new figures come after Lothian health chiefs ordered junior doctors to change the way they recorded C.diff on death certificates last year for fear they were citing it too easily without checking thoroughly, making statistics look worse. As a result, 22 people in the Lothians had the superbug listed as the "underlying" cause, with 67 having it as a "contributory factor", with MRSA accounting for five underlying and 27 contributory.

Health chiefs have now been urged not to split the statistics and be more open when recording the cause of death.

Graziella Kontkowski, a former nurse who founded the C.Diff Support Group, said: "This is now the major concern of families who lose relatives to C.diff. We continually fight hospitals to record this (as an underlying cause] on certificates because families want to be part of the statistics to show their loved one counted.

"Splitting the statistics up is purely to confuse the public, there's no other reason for it."

Health secretary Nicola Sturgeon said:

"While the overall number of deaths linked to C.diff rose in 2008, it is encouraging that the number fell steadily throughout the year. Comparing the last quarter in 2008 to that of 2007 the drop is nearly 30 per cent."