Manchester: Trusts fail hygiene targets

Seven NHS trusts in Greater Manchester are failing to meet key targets aimed at tackling bugs like MRSA, reports the Manchester Evening News.

Manchester Primary Care Trust, North Cheshire Hospitals and Stockport PCT all failed to show they are meeting two hygiene standards.

Trafford PCT, Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale PCT, Bury PCT and Warrington PCT had not met, or cannot provide enough evidence to prove they are meeting the standards.

Standards include properly decontaminating reusable medical devices, such as theatre instruments.

Nationally, one in four NHS trusts are failing to hit the minimum standards for hygiene.

The news comes just weeks after the Healthcare Commission warned that failing hospitals will be served with `improvement notices'.

Today's report, issued by the Commission, is based on trusts self-reporting on whether they meet a set of 24 core government standards on care.

A total of 55 trusts including Manchester PCT and North Cheshire Hospitals had not met, or could not prove they met the standard on keeping patients safe by reducing the risk from infections like Clostridium difficile.

Forty-three trusts, including Stockport PCT and Warrington PCT, had not met, or had no data to show they met the standard on areas being clean and buildings being in good order.

A spokesperson for Manchester PCT said: "Achieving compliance is an on-going priority for the PCT.

"We have allocated additional resources and put action plans in place to ensure progress is made and monitored in those areas where we did not declare full compliance this year."