Hospitals sickened by failure to smash tough superbug targets

Published on Friday 24 December 2010 13:34

HIGH-profile superbug targets which NHS Lothian was told to meet by March will not be hit, it has been revealed.

TESTING: The health board had been told to cut superbug levels by a third from an all-time high rate in 2006

At the height of outbreaks of infections such as MRSA and C.diff, the Scottish Government ordered health boards to cut rates by a third from their 2006 levels.

Despite progress on healthcare-acquired infections at hospitals such as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and the Western General, health chiefs confirmed that the Holyrood goal would not be reached.

It is unclear what sanctions, if any, the health board will face, although sources said public criticism - for now - would likely be the most severe outcome.

Insiders also pointed out that NHS Lothian would not be the only health board to miss the targets, and that they had been disadvantaged in the demand because rates were so high in 2006, meaning a greater drop was needed.

Director of public health and health policy, Dr Alison McCallum, praised staff for their hard work in reducing infections, but said those efforts had fallen short none-the-less. She said: "We continue to make very good progress in terms of reduction and we have detailed action plans in place to continue that.

"But we are unlikely to meet the target for March 2011 despite our best efforts and that overshadows some excellent innovations."

Exact details of health minister Nicola Sturgeon's targets were cutting MRSA rates by a third from 2006 levels - which at that point were at an all-time high - and reducing C.diff rates in the over 65s by the same proportion from 2007 statistics.

Latest figures show that in October there were 31 episodes of "staphylococcus aureus", which includes MRSA and the bug MSSA.

To hit targets, health chiefs would need to consistently get that down to around 20 per month.

Figures on C.diff are more encouraging, with only 32 episodes in pensioners in October, but that will still need to improve to satisfy ministers.

Sources in the health board pointed out that, even if the targets were missed, pride could still be taken in the decline.

In 2006, there were 40 deaths attributed to C.diff - at that time the most in Scotland - but that position has been drastically improved.

The source said: "Meeting the targets aren't the be all and end all.They are in place to drag everyone up to standard, and that has worked here.

"The position now compared to four years ago isn't even comparable."

A number of initiatives have led to the improvement, such as increased awareness on hand washing - a simple yet key weapon in fighting the spread of infections in hospital - and prompter action when an infection is identified.