Healthcare :: ?50m funding for cleaner hospitals, UK

Directors of nursing to get funds for improvements as infection improvement teams double in size

Secretary of State for Health Alan Johnson today announced ?50 million extra funding to tackle healthcare associated infections (HCAIs) such as MRSA and C.difficile.

Bug-busting infection Improvement Teams will double in size so that any Trust that is not on course to meet the 2008 MRSA target or has a significant number of patients with C.difficile, will have access to a team of experts to help them reduce infection.

Strategic Health Authority Directors of Nursing will each receive ?5 million. Working with PCTs, they will make sure that front-line clinicians make the changes which help them in the fight against HCAIs.

Health Secretary, Alan Johnson, said:

“Tackling MRSA and other healthcare associated infections is one of my immediate priorities.

“NHS staff have worked hard to slow the increase in C.difficile reports from 17 per cent to 8 per cent, whilst reducing MRSA bloodstream infections in the three months to December last year by 20 per cent, compared with 2003-04. This is a step in the right direction but clearly more must be done to improve the quality of care and patient safety.

“I am therefore asking each Director of Nursing in every Strategic Health Authority to make sure that frontline clinicians are supported in the work they do to reduce infection and to provide a clean, safe environment.

“On top of this I am doubling the size of the DH infection Improvement Team so that all Trusts struggling to reduce infections can have access to experts in prevention and control of infection.”


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