Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between David Burrowes and Simon Burns

Tuesday 12th July 2011 Commons Chamber

[Mr Burns]

My hon. Friend has hit on an important issue. The answer is clarity of purpose and vision on the part of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State not only to talk the talk, but to walk the walk and achieve dignity for patients in the NHS in England.

[Mr David Burrowes (Enfield, Southgate) (Con)]

14. What progress he has made in reducing rates of hospital-acquired infections.

Clostridium Difficile

Debate between David Burrowes and Simon Burns

Tuesday 9th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Mr Burrowes]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend. He makes the case for that proposal very well. Indeed, there are several innovative developments, not only in the hospital setting but in trying to look at prevention. Prebiotics is another area that is worth considering. I ask the Minister to look at supporting the centre I mentioned and at how we can support research in this field.

A C. diff infection exacts a great cost from the patient who suffers from it and the family who witness it. It is also financially expensive. In 2008, the Department of Health released a report called “Clean, safe care: reducing infections and saving lives”, which noted that treating one patient with a C. diff infection cost the NHS more than £4,000 per patient. By this estimation, and considering the number of infections reported last year, C. diff cost taxpayers close to £1 billion in the past 12 months.

It is true that C. diff has received a far more coherent and concerted response from the NHS in the past three years than it had previously. It is equally clear that this focus has had a positive effect on the quality of care and on survival rates in our hospitals. Last year the infection was noted on fewer than 4,000 death certificates and was considered to be responsible for deaths in 1,712 cases. That is less than half the rate in 2007, when more people died as a result of C. diff than as a result of road accidents. However, as the Secretary of State for Health has said:

“There is no tolerable level of preventable infections.”

I am grateful to his Department for making it clear that a zero-tolerance approach to health care-associated infections is a priority for the Government. During the week beginning 26 September, 190 new cases of infection were reported by hospitals in England and Wales—an average of 27 cases a day, or more than one every hour. There is no room at all for complacency.

One problem of which we need to be aware is the number of incidents of recurring C. diff symptoms in patients. I am greatly concerned that hospitals are releasing those who have suffered with the symptoms of the infection too early, which leads to many having to return to hospital with the same problem. I am glad that the Department has recently made it clear that hospitals are responsible for the care of a patient for up to 30 days after they have been discharged.

[The Minister of State, Department of Health (Mr Simon Burns)]

indicated assent.

[Mr Burrowes]

I am glad that the Minister fully shares my concern. It is good to know that hospitals cannot expect any additional payment for treating those who have suffered a recurrence during those 30 days. However, I ask him whether there could be any sanctions on trusts that sadly fail to reduce the rate of infection.

Along with the Department of Health, my constituent Graziella has produced a leaflet, which my hon. Friend the Minister helpfully distributed just before the debate. It is called “C. difficile—now you are going home”, and it sets out the best ways for patients to protect against the infection spreading. It is intended to be given to patients so that they can be aware of the risks and know how to prevent other vulnerable people from catching the infection. However, although both Graziella and I would like to see this leaflet distributed by every hospital and GP, there is no requirement that that happen. Many patients return home without the information in that fantastic leaflet about how best to protect themselves and others. Will the Minister consider requiring—or, in the more localising language that Conservative Members prefer, incentivising—hospitals to provide the leaflet or similar information to all patients leaving their charge who have had the infection?

Although improvements have been made in acute trust hospitals such as my local North Middlesex university hospital, it is important that we do not lose sight of the need to pay attention to what is happening in our primary care trusts. In fact, in every month of last year, PCTs reported far more cases of C. diff than acute trusts. Enfield PCT, which is by no means extraordinary in this regard, reported 144 cases in patients aged over two in just the past year.