July 04

Superbug MRSA - Suffolk HealthCare response

Suffolk HealthCare branch of UNISON successfully steered the Suffolk NHS health service system away from private contractors providing catering and cleaning services three years ago with the exception of Ipswich Hospital which is the only bastion of NHS health within the county that is not part of our constituency. This means, all catering and cleaning contracts were returned back into the NHS and all staff were transferred with no job losses. Not only is the catering of a better standard, but the efforts of all cleaning staff showed a marked improvement in all areas with the same numbers of staff.

Our hospitals are not perfect, but they are cleaner and safer. We urge all health branches of UNISON to fight back and get these services back into the NHS and away from the control of the private contractors.

Hospital superbug on the rise - UNISON National report seen here

(14/7/04) UNISON is urging the department of health to increase the number of cleaners on the wards and introduce easier access to hand washing facilities, as part of its fight to cut the number of cases of MRSA.

A study released today by the National Audit Office said hundreds of people are dying every year because of bugs caught in hospitals. Dirty wards and poor hygiene were among the key reasons for high rates of infection.

Earlier in the week health secretary, John Reid, announced a range of measures to combat the spread of MRSA but UNISON general secretary, Dave Prentis, said the most obvious solution was to increase cleaning services and move them back inhouse.

“Ask any nurse or patient, ridding hospital wards of the killerbug MRSA is not rocket science – what’s needed is cleaner hospitals and cleaner wards,” he said.

“UNISON wants cleaning contracts taken back inhouse so that hospital staff have direct control over their environment and can take action to deal with any problems. We need to increase the number of cleaning staff on the wards because just as the number of cases of MRSA have been going up, the number of cleaning staff have been slashed over the years.”

Prentis also called for staff and visitors to be given access to hand washing facilities or wipes as part of the crackdown.

Among the proposals put forward by the health secretary were for hospitals to publish and displays infection rates and trends and for matrons to be in charge of cleaners at ward level so they can ensure high standards are maintained.

Trusts judged to be performing poorly on cleanliness will be instructed to provide an action plan for improvement within three weeks, followed up by a re-inspection within six weeks.

Reid’s proposal for new model cleaning contracts for hospitals to put quality above cost was seen as a positive move by Prentis.

“Under the previous government the cheapest bid always won the contract," he said. " It is good to see that we are moving back to quality - because quality and efficiency in health terms isn’t just about saving money it’s about saving lives and avoiding pain,” he said.