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January 2007
Britain: Government fails to tackle MRSA
The call comes after a leaked memo said the government target of halving MRSA infections by 2008 is not going to be reached.
In the memo to government health secretary Patricia Hewitt, reported in the Health Service Journal, National Health Service director of health protection Liz Woodeson wrote: “Although numbers are coming down, we are not on course to meet that target and there is some doubt over whether it is in fact achievable”.
UNISON, which has over 400,000 members in the health sector, urged the government to introduce "bug-busting measures" to tackle hospital acquired infections, including employing more cleaners.
In November 2004, then health secretary John Reid pledged MRSA rates would be halved by April 2008. But the leaked memo predicted that rates would only be cut by a third by next year.
“The public has a right to know what progress, if any, the government is making in the fight against MRSA," said UNISON head of health Karen Jennings. "Let's have the extent of the problem out in the open.
“It's clear that the action taken so far has not been effective. The focus has been almost entirely on hand washing, but we need a range of bug-busting measures if we are going to succeed in beating infection rates."
These should include employing more cleaners, the use of isolation units and looking at high bed occupancy rates, she said.
“On top off the human misery and suffering, these superbugs cost the NHS over £1bn a year. It would cost a fraction of that money to fight back by employing more cleaners.
"We have half the number of cleaners in the NHS than we employed 20 years ago and we need to bring back a culture of cleaning," Ms Jennings added.
"NHS cleaners should be part of the infection control team, accountable to the hospital, not a private contractor. We need more cleaners with enough time and equipment to do the job thoroughly."