Patient infection rate in Scottish hospitals falls

Published on Wednesday 9 September 2009 19:07

A DRIVE to improve hospital standards is cutting infection rates, the Scottish Government has said.

The Patient Safety Programme has also led to shorter stays in intensive care for patients in some hospitals.

The improvements were highlighted yesterday when health secretary Nicola Sturgeon visited Stirling Royal Infirmary, one of the hospitals taking part.

Launched 20 months ago and set to run for five years, the programme aims to reduce hospital mortality by 15 per cent and "adverse incidents" by 30 per cent.

Measures include evaluating processes staff need to go through to prevent infection, to ensure these are carried out all the time and regular discussion between everyone involved in caring for a patient – daily goals are now set for patient care.

The government says the strategy has reduced ventilator-acquired pneumonia and the length of time patients stay in intensive care.

NHS Forth Valley has not had a patient with a central-line infection – a tube used to deliver drugs – since January 2008.