About HCA

• Clean, safe
• MRSA 2009
• C. Difficile

Hand hygiene

This is the most important aspect of infection control. All members of staff including medical staff are required to follow good hand hygiene practice - which includes washing their hands with soap and water or the use of antiseptic hand gel - and we run a campaign of regular reminders and training sessions.

You can help. Anyone can carry germs on their hands, so we encourage you and your visitors to wash your hands too or use the hand gel provided. Hand gel is available in all clinical areas, but please feel free to ask our staff members if they have cleaned their hands when they enter the rooms.

Designed to be clean

All of our hospitals have been designed to reduce the risk of infection spreading from one patient to the next. We continually adapt and improve our hospitals with the latest features to enhance good infection control practice, such as sensor taps and wet rooms.

Cleaning policy

All rooms are meticulously cleaned before patients arrive. Our stringent cleaning policies include colour coded cleaning materials and appropriate training for all cleaning staff.

Screening patients for MRSA

All patients are routinely screened for MRSA (Meticillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus) either before or immediately on admission. This enables us to quickly treat and isolate any positive patients. Our MRSA infection rates are six times lower than the average for other London hospitals. In 2009 there were no cases of MRSA occurring in our hospitals and we were the first hospital group to utilise the brand new e-Qit hygiene inspection and auditory system. All six of our hospital achieved the maximum five stars aware for cleanliness.

Codes of practice to reduce infection

Across our hospitals we have put in place methods of working and best practice for all our staff to follow. This is based on the "Code of Practice for Prevention and Control of Healthcare Associated Infections" defined by the Health Act 2006.

Results externally audited

We collect and record our infection data and submit this to external agencies, such as the Health Protection Agency. This means that we are measured in exactly the same way as all other NHS hospitals as well as other private hospitals that choose to submit data.

MRSA

HCA Quality - Our commitment to being the cleanest, safest hospitals in London

In 2009 there were no cases of MRSA occurring in our hospitals and we were the first hospital group to utilise the brand new e-Qit hygiene inspection and auditory system. All six of our hospitals achieved the maximum five stars award for cleanliness. This can in part be attributed to our policy of screening all elective patients before they are admitted and treating all patients arriving from other hospitals and from abroad as potentially infected until they are proven to be clear.

Any elective patient who is found to be carrying MRSA can be treated and the infection cleared before admission. In addition our patients have single rooms which are rigorously cleaned between occupants to ensure that the risk of infection is again minimised.

We also have a stringent hand washing policy in our hospitals and all staff and visitors, are required to use the antibacterial hand gel which is available outside all patient rooms.

C Difficile

Very low risk of C Difficile infection in our private hospitals in London

Clostridium Difficile is also carefully monitored in our hospitals and HCA has a rigorous approach to protecting our patients against an outbreak of C.Difficile. This policy, which is based on good nursing management and monitoring of vulnerable patients, has been adopted across all our hospitals. It includes:

• All our staff are trained to immediately spot antibiotic induced diarrhoea.
• Isolation of patients with symptoms
• Hand washing with soap and water (alcohol gels are ineffective against C. Difficile)
• Close adherence to antibiotic prescribing policies (HCA Hospitals provide consultant-led patient care in which antibiotic usage is carefully monitored by the consultants and by our pharmacies
• Maintaining a high standard of cleanliness (In HCA hospitals rigorous cleaning of patient rooms takes place in line with national guidelines using detergent and chlorine
• Ensuring that all staff comply with the policy

When you are caring for hundreds of thousands of patients as we are, this policy ensures that the risks to our patients are kept to an absolute minimum. In 2009 we had one case of C.Difficile in our hospitals.

What is C.Difficile?

C.Difficile is a bacterium which is relatively common and is usually harmless. It is also more likely to occur in patients who have recently been given antibiotics or who have undergone surgery or chemotherapy. It is also more common in the over 65s.. This is because these treatments upset the natural gut ‘flora', which means foreign bacteria are more likely to take hold. A symptom is diarrhoea, which in severe cases can result in infection of the bowel – a serious condition.

Good nursing management and monitoring of vulnerable patients helps to reduce the possibility of them contacting a C. Difficile infection. However, individual isolated cases are extremely difficult to avoid in vulnerable patients.

In the event that a patient does develop C.Difficile, it is important to contain the source of infection and prevent an outbreak to avoid further patients becoming ill.

Please note, we never turn away a patient who already has MRSA or C.Difficile, including patients transferred to us from other hospitals because of our intensive care and other specialist facilities.