Bob Doris MSP today welcomed the announcement of a new inspectorate to keep tabs on hospital cleanliness. SNP MSP for Glasgow Bob Doris, who has tabled a motion before parliament on the matter, said a new inspector and random inspections of hospitals and health care premises would play a significant role in lowering levels of hospital acquired infections and tackling superbugs.

"Random inspections and a chief inspector to improve standards and co-ordinate the battle against the superbugs will help achieve the highest standards possible in our country's hospitals.

"The SNP has made real progress in tackling hospital acquired infections and we are determined to see this problem resolved.

"When the SNP Government came to office there were with no targets for cutting c.difficile and no measures in place to screen incoming patients for MRSA.

"The previous Executive had only just started monitoring c.diff – three years after England. “Now we are seeing investment in screening, new cleaning facilities, education campaigns and the return of hospital cleaning to the public sector.

"With charge nurses now responsible for ward cleanliness and a new inspectorate to monitor success and push forward improvements the SNP’s crackdown on superbugs has created accountability and responsibility that will cut down the number of HAI cases in Scotland."

Notes.

1. Government news release.

2. Bob Doris MSP's motion

S3M-03672 Bob Doris (Glasgow) (Scottish National Party): Working in Partnership to Improve Hospital Hygiene— That the Parliament welcomes the contribution of two recent initiatives by the Scottish Government to help improve the cleanliness of hospitals in Scotland; believes that government spending of £400,000 on 250 steam cleaners for NHS boards across Scotland, with 61 steam cleaning kits to be provided in the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde area alone at a cost of £98,000, will allow specialised cleaning to prevent Clostridium difficile and contribute towards reducing infection rates; further welcomes the announcement by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing, Nicola Sturgeon MSP, of new random hygiene inspections, which will see all acute hospitals receive one planned and one unannounced inspection in the next three years as part of the new Care Environment Inspectorate regime, and hopes that the new inspectorate will complement NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s Cleaning Services and Peer Public Involvement Programme, which trains volunteers to cleaning standards in its hospitals and health centres.