Audit finds significant improvement in hospital hygiene

A new audit of Irish hospitals has found significant improvements in hygiene standards.

Minister for Health Mary Harney

The Health Service Executive's (HSE) National Hygiene Audit, which was held in Ireland's 53 acute hospitals from February to April this year, gave a "good" rating to the majority of hospitals.

This corresponds to a score of 85 per cent or better adherence to hygiene procedures.

The cleanest hospitals were St Luke's Hospital in Rathgar and the Midland Regional Hospital in Mullingar. Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin was also rated good. The dirtiest hospitals in the country were Monaghan General and South Infirmary/Victoria Hospital in Cork. Cavan General and Roscommon General also scored poorly.

Overall, 32 hospitals were rated good, compared to only five in the previous audit. Nineteen hospitals were rated as fair compared to 23 in the first audit and two were deemed poor. This is a significant improvement over the first audit which found 26 were poor.

The most improved hospitals were Beaumont Hospital in Dublin, the Midland Regional Hospital in Mullingar and St Columcille's Hospital in Loughlinstown.

Despite the HSE push to improve hygiene, standards were found to have dropped in two hospitals, namely Monaghan General and Merlin Park Regional Hospital in Galway. South Infirmary/Victoria Hospital in Cork, which was rated poor in the previous audit, showed no improvement.

Minister for Health and Children Mary Harney welcomed the results but urged hospitals to better their performances in the next audit.

"We cannot become complacent. I want to salute the effort but I also want to encourage it to continue. Our hospitals must aim for the highest standards of care. The journey has begun and it is not going to stop."

She warned that forthcoming legislation would ensure anybody planning to open a hospital will have to meet strict licensing requirements. "Anybody in Ireland can open a hospital. That isn't a satisfactory situation. We have to move to a process of accreditation and licensing," she said.

The Irish Nurses Organisation also welcomed the report but cautioned that more investment was needed in the health service to prevent the spread of superbugs like MRSA.

INO General Secretary Liam Doran said overcrowding and the lack of isolation units in hospitals were contributing to the spread of these bugs.

"No matter how well resources are managed hospital hygiene will not be fully addressed until the persistent overcrowding and lack of appropriate infection control facilities are addressed through the building of increased capacity in our hospitals."

The Irish Patients Association said the results showed Irish hospitals were being better managed.

Another audit to be carried out on the hospitals later this year. The HSE said a consultation on a new cleaning manual is under way. This manual will provide advice for cleaning staff on general hygiene and cleaning in hospitals. It will also provide an overview of infection prevention and control issues.

Labour Party health spokeswoman Liz McManus welcomed the significant improvement in hygiene standards.

She said, however, that hygiene alone would not reduce infections such as MRSA and the winter vomiting bug.

"We need a concerted effort by HSE to combat hospital infection and to bring into force guidelines that were published 11 years ago but which have still not been implemented," she said.

"It is totally unacceptable that there is an ongoing cover up on number of cases of MRSA. At our recent Oireachtas Committee meeting, Prof Drumm said he didn't want to publish this info because it would be too disturbing for people! In my view that is a grossly irresponsible attitude that needs to be changed.

"We need an audit on the level of hospital infections just as we now have an audit of hygiene," Ms McManus said.