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HPA praises "major achievement" in reducing rates of MRSA

30/01/2008

A "major achievement" in reducing MRSA infection rates has been achieved in the last year, the Health Protection Agency (HPA) said today.

Its latest figures reveal that there was an 18 per cent drop in cases of MRSA from the July to September quarter in 2007 from the previous quarter (April to June).

This represents a drop of about 230 cases between the quarters.

From April 2007 to September there were 1.24 cases per 10,000 bed days; a 21 per cent decrease from the 1.57 cases per 10,000 bed days during the previous six months.

"This continued decrease in MRSA bloodstream infections is a major achievement against the seemingly unstoppable rise that we saw throughout the 1990s," commented Dr Georgia Duckworth, head of the HPA's healthcare-associated infection and antimicrobial resistance department.

"Latest figures show a continuing downward trend, despite a backdrop of increasing workloads and complex patient needs."

The HPA also released figures showing a decrease in the number of Clostridium difficile (C.diff) cases, although it urged caution over their interpretation as how cases are monitored has changed.

There were 10,734 C.diff cases in patients aged 65 years and over in England reported in the third quarter of 2007 (July – September).

This is a 21 per cent decrease on the previous quarter (April – June) when 13,669 reports were received and a reduction of 2,087 cases (16 per cent) on the same period last year.

Commenting on the report, Jo Webber, deputy director of policy at the
NHS Confederation, said: "The significant decreases in MRSA and C.diff rates show how the NHS is committed to addressing infection control and how, with the right focus, it can deliver.

"To ensure that infection rates continue to decline, a zero tolerance approach to infection must be embedded in the ethos of all NHS staff. Solutions need everyone - including the local community - to work together."