'Still warm' beds breed bug fears (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

'Still warm' beds breed bug fears

THE fight against hospital superbug MRSA is being hampered because patients at Swindon's flagship hospital are spending too much time in bed.

The warning came as it was revealed that on average more than nine out of ten beds are occupied by patients at the GWH.

But GWH says that while it knows it has to reduce the bed occupancy levels to help reduce risk of hospital acquired infection, patients are not being put at greater risk of infection.

Newly published government figures revealed on average 423 out of the hospital's 455 beds are in use at any one time.

And the hospital's occupancy rate of 93.1 per cent is much higher than the government's target of 85 per cent.

Health experts warn that overcrowded wards undermine efforts to combat hospital acquired infections like MRSA.

Hospital bosses are told to ensure there is always "extra capacity" to allow nurses and cleaning staff to thoroughly clean and keep superbugs at bay. In June, it was revealed that the number of recorded cases of potentially dangerous MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureu) have increased in the past year.

Figures revealed there were 23 infections at Swindon and Marlborough NHS Trust in the year to March, compared with 17 cases in 2003-04.

Liberal Democrat Steve Webb, who uncovered the figures, said occupancy rates are soaring because cash-strapped hospitals are cutting back on front-line care.

He said: "In some hospitals, a bed hardly has time to get cold before the next person occupies it, making effective infection control all the more difficult.

"The Government should realise that driving up bed occupancy rates is damaging the fight against infection and it should enable hospitals to run at more sustainable levels of activity. Budget pressures mean the trusts are currently cutting beds, yet what is actually needed is more bed capacity in order to tackle

superbugs."

The figures also revealed that Swindon Primary Care Trust is failing to meet the government target.

On average, 53 of the trust's 60 beds are in use an occupancy rate of 87.7 per cent.

Last year, Professor Barry Cookson, of the Health Protection Agency, warned that high bed occupancy is related to the spread of hospital acquired infections.

He said: "Patients should realise that there is a certain safety level above which we start having problems."

Ruth Lockwood, GWH's director of infection control, said: "We are aware of our bed occupancy levels and the impact that can have on infection control.

"But it is totally unacceptable to say that we compromise patient safety at GWH.

"We always work very hard to maintain the highest level of care at all times for our patients irrespective of bed occupancy levels and that extends to infection control and cleanliness."