British PM orders hospitals deep clean

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WORLD / Europe

British PM orders hospitals deep clean

(Agencies)
Updated: 2007-09-23 09:24

London - British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has ordered a deep clean of
every hospital in Britain to tackle hospital "superbugs", he told the
News of the World.

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, seen here on 04 September 2007, has
ordered a deep clean of every hospital in Britain to tackle hospital
"superbugs". [AFP]

Every hospital will be disinfected and scrubbed clean over the next year,
the prime minister wrote in an article for the Sunday newspaper which was
made available ahead of time.

The National Health Service is currently being plagued by deadly
infections such as Clostridium difficile, or C.Diff, and MRSA, or
methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which are resistant to
treatment with most available antiobiotics.

In the undated photograph released by West Middlesex University Hospital
in England on Monday Sept. 17, 2007, junior doctor Naomi Smith wears a
new uniform which could replace the traditional white coat as part of the
fight against hospital superbugs.?[Reuters]?

"A ward at a time, walls, ceilings, fittings and ventilation shafts will
be disinfected and scrubbed clean," Brown wrote.

A recent report found British hospitals were among the worst in Europe
for superbugs, behind poorer European Union members like Slovakia and
Poland.

Britain has also scored lower than other European countries in studies on
survival rates for cancer and stroke victims, despite spending far more
in many cases on treatment.

Figures show that C.Diff was a factor in more than 3,800 deaths across
the country while MRSA contributed to 1,650 deaths caused by
hospital-acquired infections.

The bacterium, commonly transmitted while patients are in the hospital,
most often affects those with weak immune systems and the elderly.

Brown also said new measures would be introduced to allow patients to see
GPs out of hours and at weekends. He said access would also be improved,
whether it be NHS walk-in centres or GP surgeries in high-street stores
like Boots or Tesco.

Screening for breast and colon cancer will be widened to include more
people and test results for cervical cancer screenings will be issued
within 14 days, Brown said, without specifying when the changes would
take place.

"Over the past few months, I've been around the country visiting
hospitals, GP surgeries and health centres. I've learned from what people
have told me and I've heard the need for change," Brown wrote.

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