This is the fifth year of the Oxoid Infection Control Team of the Year Awards and the task of deciding the winner gets no easier. “The standard of entries was extremely high with many examples of excellent practices and falling rates of infection,” said Fiona Macrae, Oxoid Awards manager and chairman of judges. “The results given by many entrants prove that their work is contributing to better patient and public outcomes, which is encouraging news for us all. The winning teams should be justly proud of their achievements.”
The winners are as follows:
1st: Worcester Acute NHS Trust, UK
The first prize of £5,000 in the 2007/2008 Oxoid Infection Control Team of the Year Awards has been awarded to the team at the Worcester Acute NHS Trust.
The judges were impressed that, faced with many challenges, including the major disruption of Department of Health Intervention, the team were able to reduce rates of MRSA and C. difficile infections, reduce antibiotic usage and introduce a number of novel methods for reinforcing the message of infection prevention and control around the Trust.
Initiatives key to the success of the team include the introduction of an administrative post with the task of reviewing all admissions to certain target wards for MRSA risk factors and coordinating any necessary screening, resulting in compliance with screening protocol increasing to over 90% and a dramatic reduction in MRSA blood stream infections (BSI).
A programme of weekly self-audit was introduced in ward areas, with addition inspections by infection control nurses, and a rolling programme of steam cleaning was introduced, along with a rapid response team which brought about a significant reduction in the rates of C. difficile infection.
A new system of antibiotic stewardship led to around a two thirds reduction in the use of both ciprofloxacin and cephalosporins; a proactive system to ensure completion of root cause analysis of deaths due to MRSA BSI and C. difficile infection was introduced; novel, eye-catching signage and Pipamedia talking boxes used to promote a re-launch of CleanYourHands campaign; all contributing to the results obtained within the Trust.
The judges commented that, ”despite the disruption that intervention by the Department of Health brings, the team had achieves some remarkable successes.”
2nd: East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust
The judges commented on the volume of work undertaken by a comparatively small team working across 6 hospital sites. In particular that, “It was a solid entry from a dedicated infection control team achieving good results using standard methods, combined with a few novel components of their own, such as a 10 point plan for the management of cannulae and catheters”. The Trust, which already had comparatively low rates of MRSA BSI succeeded in achieving further improvements. C. difficile infection rates have also fallen 58% over 2007. Data from the Department of Health indicates that the reduction on HCAI within the East Kent Hospital Trust since 2003/04 has saved £9m and over 19,000 bed days. The team will receive a prize of £1,000 and a framed certificate.
3rd: Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
To improve infection control practice within the Trust and to devolve ownership of infection control to individual clinical areas, the team from Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust developed and introduced of a ward accreditation programme. The judges felt that this concept, of embedding infection control in every clinical ward, was a highly innovative approach. Its implementation has resulted the Trust being on target to achieve the Department of Health target of a 60% reduction in MRSA BSI by end of March 2008, as well as significant improvements in compliance with hand hygiene, dress codes and cleanliness audits. The team will receive a prize of £500 and a framed certificate.
*Staff Representatives Shown in Photograph
Left to right back row: Sarah Cope and Susan Pitts - Infection Control Nurses, Lincoln Chibge - HCAI Clinical Implementation Nurse, Heather Gentry and Rachael Allen - Senior Infection Control Nurses
Left to right front row: Janet Turner - Directorate Support Officer, Dr Anne Dyas - Director of Infection Prevention Control, Louise Poole - MRSA Screening Assistant.
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