Infection Control Rates
Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is committed to reducing the incidence of healthcare associated infections. We investigate all serious infections so that we can learn from them and take action to improve practice where necessary. We have implemented proactive strategies to reduce both MRSA* and Clostridium difficile infections and it is anticpated that the affects of these strategies will impact upon all other avoidable infections.
We routinely publish our information about out infection rates on this page of our website and information can also be found on the Health Protection Agency’s website www.hpa.org.uk
To meet targets set by the Strategic Health Authority and NHS Wirral we aim to reduce the number of MRSA bloodstream infections to no more than 5 in 2011/12 and the number of Clostridium difficile* cases to no more than 122 in the same period.
Since 22nd September 2010 there have been no cases of MRSA bloodstream infection reported by the hospital. Also between 1st April 2011 and 31st August 2011 there were 27 cases of Clostridium difficile. We are confident that we will once again achieve our goal to reduce these avoidable infections.
On-going Infection Prevention & Control campaigns aim to raise the infection control profile even higher within our Trust and to increase awareness amongst staff, patients and visitors of how important it is to ‘Keep it Clean’.
*MRSA (Meticillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus) – bacteria on which some antibiotics have no effect. They can be destroyed easily outside the body with soap and water but if they enter the bloodstream stronger antibiotics are required to treat the infection successfully.
*Clostridium difficile – is a type of bacterium which lives in the gut and under normal circumstances, does not give rise to illness. However, it can grow in some people when antibiotics are given for unrelated infections. It usually affects those patients who are elderly and/or debilitated.
Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Arrowe Park Hospital, Arrowe Park Road, Upton, Wirral, Merseyside CH49 5PE
Switchboard: (0151) 678 5111