The Sunday Daily Mail today:
Where did these infections come from? It would be necessary for them to have been hospital-acquired to claim the QEUH is unsafe.
This researched by a TuS contributor
Since the SNP took power they have delivered and maintained a significant reduction in hospital-acquired infections (HAIs).
In 2005-2006, a national survey reported an HAI prevalence of 9.5% in Scotland’s acute hospitals. By 2011-2012, this had decreased to 4.9%, a nearly 50% reduction.
In 2021, approximately 1% of hospital patients in Scotland develop an HAI, showing continued progress in infection control.
The SNP also reduced the number of hugely damaging Clostridium difficile infections. The rate of infections dropped from a rate of 1.5 cases per 1,000 acute occupied bed days under Labour to 0.32 cases.
In summary, the SNP had to tackle a crisis in hospital-acquired infections inherited from Scottish Labour. People need to remember this record, which cost many lives, when they listen to Anas Sarwar making promises about the NHS.
Results from the Scottish National HAI Prevalence Survey
Healthcare Associated Infection (HCAI) strategy 2023 to 2025
NHSScotland Chief Executive’s Annual Report 2011/12
Why might Scotland’s hospitals be cleaner? One reason:
Scotland axes outsourced hospital cleaning | Nursing Times
https://www.nursingtimes.net › archive › scotland-axes-ou…
20 Oct 2008 — Scottish Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon announced the move to end outsourcing of catering, cleaning and porter services across all NHS …
How under Scottish Labour, hospitals were ‘death traps’ of hospital acquired infections and how Nicola Sturgeon sorted it
The prevalence of HAI was 4.9%, 2.5%, 6.1% and 1.2% in acute, non-acute, paediatric and independent hospitals respectively [in Scotland in 2006]. https://www.journalofhospitalinfection.com/article/S0195-6701(12)00277-0/abstractThe most recent comprehensive data on hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) in Scotland comes from a 2021 study led by Glasgow Caledonian University, commissioned by the Scottish Government. This study, published in the Journal of Hospital Infection, found that approximately 1% of hospital patients in Scotland develop HAIs annually, equating to about 7,500 patients each year. This incidence rate is notably lower than previous UK estimates (7.8%) and recent European figures (3%). https://www.scotpho.org.uk/health-conditions/infections/data/healthcare-associated-infections/
So, hospital acquired infections under the SNP are between a fifth and a half of the level in 2006, under Labour, an eighth of the level in England and a third of the level in Europe.
Why, so good?
In Scotland, the decision was taken in 2008, against the background of major problems in British hospitals with infections resistant to treatment. The Scottish ministry of health [Health Secretary, Nicola Sturgeon] banned any further contracting-out of these services, so that when existing contracts expire all work returns and remains in-house. It also financed the employment of 600 extra cleaners to raise standards of cleanliness.https://www.epsu.org/article/uk-hospital-cleaning-brought-house-scotland-wales-n-ireland
New research shows that NHS hospitals that employ private cleaners are associated with a higher incidence of MRSA, a ‘superbug’ that causes life-threatening infection and has previously been linked with a lack of cleanliness…on average, the incidence of MRSA infection between 2005 and 2009 was 2.28 in every 100,000 bed days in trusts that outsourced their cleaning, compared with 1.46 bed days in trusts that used in-house cleaners –.a difference of almost 50 per cent.
The research was conducted by the University of Oxford, with the London School of Economics and Political Science, and the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
http://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2016-12-21-nhs-hospitals-outsource-cleaning-%E2%80%98linked-higher-rates-mrsa%E2%80%99johnrobertson834health, history, news, nhs, politicsEditjohnrobertson834Edit
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Important to remind people of just how dangerous and prevalent HAIs were pre Nicola Sturgeon’s reforms.
My brother died of it in 2008. My neighbour’s brother died of it. Many other people I knew in my small community acquired life threatening HAIs in hospital. It is a scandal that the true cause of this plague is hidden from the public by the lying press and their Labour lackeys.
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Really sorry to hear that.
John
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I am sorry to hear that about your brother. I lost an uncle to an HAI.
In the last year or so of Labour’s time in charge at Holyrood the situation with HAIs in hospitals had in fact reached the point where even the MSM could not ignore it and there were fairly regular articles about the level of infections in hospitals especially MRSA which wascould be fatal. MRSA infections made up 10% or slightly higher proportion of HAIs.
The HAIs were not all down to poor cleaning standards or visitors bringing in infections. Medical staff and their poor grasp of hygiene also contributed to the incidence of HAIs. Ms Sturgeon recognised this and as well as bringing cleaning back in-house also promoted anything below the elbow’ for staff.
All of these measures contributed to a fall in HAIs but didn’t eradicate them and from what I have seen as patient and visitor over the past 20yrs or so there needs to be a concerted effort especially targeted at medical staff to tackle HAIs.
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To be clear, the change in the status of hospitals was brought in under the Tories. Outsourced cleaning was introduced to the health and education sectors making it impossible to supervise them locally. No more matron!
Each sector was designated a “cost centre” so that accounting could be easily outsourced to private providers. The large entrance of Aberdeen RoyaI Infirmary was turned into a petrol station forecourt with shops, Costa Coffee and a self service mini market. The WRI voluntary tea/biscuit/newspaper trolley service disappeared. The voluntary creche disappeared and was replaced by a self service cafeteria. Profit and germs spread like a plague.
When Labour was elected with a huge majority in 1997 we all assumed they would reverse the process. But no – they extended it. Even hospital parking was franchised out to private companies for profit. Labour in Scotland could have reversed it but didn’t.
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