NORTH Cheshire Hospitals – which runs Warrington and Halton General hospitals – has achieved the biggest reduction in the country for cases of the hospital superbug Clostridium Difficile (C.diff).
This was revealed by NHS North West at the same time as announcing that the majority of hospitals and primary care trusts in the region have achieved national targets to ensure people wait no more than 18 weeks for treatment.
NHS North West chief executive Mike Farrar praised the region’s hospital and health centre staff.
He said: “NHS staff have had to face a number of big challenges in recent years.
“It was imperative that we made our hospitals and health centres safe environments. We also felt that we had a duty to end needless waiting for NHS treatment.”
The latest figures show that Warrington and Halton and another North West trust, – Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre, both achieved a 43 per cent reduction in cases of C.diff – the best reduction across the UK.
This follows figures earlier this month which showed that infection rates for the other hospital superbug, MRSA, had falled by 16 per cent in the region.
The Department of Health has set a target to reduce C.diff infections by 30 per cent in the next three years and MRSA rates by 57 per cent from levels in 2003/2004.
In addition, the national target is for patients referred by their GP, to begin their treatment within 18 weeks, unless the patient decides to delay their treatment or there are clinical reasons for a delay.
Mr Farrar said: “Even five years ago, it wasn’t uncommon for some patients to have to wait anything up to 18 months for their treatment to start.
“Our doctors, nurses, therapists and managers have worked closely together to transform the experience of patients, making sure they have more accessible treatment. We’ve got more front-line NHS staff than ever before, and this coupled with investment in NHS services has made a big difference.
“I’ve said previously that all NHS staff take infections such as MRSA and C.diff seriously. Preventing and controlling infection is an ongoing priority for everyone. We will continue to work hard and share successful ways to improve in this area and to make sure that good performance is sustained.”
Kath Holbourn, director of nursing at the Warrington and Halton hospitals, said:
“These figures show a dramatic decrease in the numbers of C-Diff infections we have seen over the last few months. Patients can be assured by these figures that our programme of work around reducing infections is paying dividends.
“It’s the result of hard work by our staff and new initiatives to improve the care for patients at risk of infection – such as those who have been on long courses of antibiotics.
“Our specialist ward for infection control at Warrington Hospital is helping prevent the risk of infection spreading and leading to better outcomes for patients who develop infection. We’re also working closely with GPs in the community to reduce the unnecessary use of antibiotics in high risk patients. There’s still work to be done but these huge drops in numbers show that we’re providing better, safer care for our patients.”
Twenty out of 29 North West trusts have already achieved the December target of 90 per cent of inpatient admissions and 95 per cent of outpatient treatments within 18 weeks. The remaining trusts are on track to achieve the target.
Pictured: nurses using a hygiene handrub at Warrington Hospital
