Reducing Healthcare Associated Infections in Hospitals in England

Now that the end of the March 2008 target date for reducing MRSA bloodstream infections has passed, the NAO have undertaken a further examination of the progress made on preventing and controlling healthcare associated infections in NHS acute hospital and acute foundation trusts (hospital trusts) in England. They focused on hospital trusts as the risk of acquiring an infection is highest in the hospital setting, and the Department’s resources and effort have so far been concentrated there. The prevention and control principles that apply to hospitals do however apply equally to other healthcare settings. This report evaluates the changes since 2003-04 in the extent and impact of healthcare infections; the effectiveness, sustainability and cost of the Department’s approach; and the effectiveness of action within hospitals to improve the prevention and control of infections. An Executive Summary can be found at: - http://www.nao.org.uk/idoc.ashx?docId=dd7fabf7-8fdd-4b3b-bded-f618d1a4bb9a&version=-1