Action Promised On Hospital Cleanliness

While the North South Ministerial Council Sectoral meeting today was targeting both health and food safety, the NI Health Minister Michael McGimpsey - who chaired the event - was pledging action on an embarrassing report into NI's hospital hygiene.

The action plan followed widespread concerns, including those voiced by the Vice Chair of Stormont's Health Committee Michelle O'Neill.

She said: "The findings of the report will cause deep alarm amongst the public and indeed health professionals."

Moving quickly to minimise damage from Tuesday's report, Michael McGimpsey said today he is setting up a new team to drive up cleanliness standards in hospitals and other healthcare facilities.

He said they will report to him on a monthly basis and that the team will comprise senior staff from the Department and Public Health Agency.

Their key role will be to ensure that there are rigorous monitoring arrangements in place to check that real and rapid improvements are being delivered.

The Minister's comments follow the publication of the latest unannounced hygiene inspection reports by the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA).

Mr McGimpsey said: "Over the last two years I have made significant investment in cleaner and safer care for all patients.

"Although the RQIA reports show areas of real improvement in hygiene and cleanliness, particularly in hospitals in the Northern and Western trusts, I am gravely concerned by the poor performance in some trusts," he said.

"That is why I am establishing a new team whose primary aim is to drive up standards and rigorously monitor hygiene and cleanliness levels across all our healthcare facilities.

"I am encouraged that, for the majority of issues identified at the sites visited by RQIA, the actions have either been completed or significantly progressed.

"In addition, over the last 18 months we have made huge strides in reducing MRSA and C difficile infections in hospitals.

"The latest provisional figures also show that the number of infections has fallen by some 30%. This is welcome news," he conctinued.

"However, the public rightly expect hospitals to be clean consistently and this is currently not the case in some facilities.

"This is not acceptable and I am determined to take whatever steps necessary to address it."

Further actions to be taken by the Minister to address issues raised in the reports include the senior officials in health trusts to 'walk the wards' at least every month to check on cleanliness and hygiene levels; a 'toolkit' for ward staff to monitor the state of hospital wards and additional support and advice for domestic cleaning staff.

The Minister continued: "Clean, safe hospitals are essential if we are to maintain public confidence in our health and social care service."

(BMcC)