Health Secretary: Fine dirty hospitals and take on extra midwives

12 April 2012

Hospitals face fines and ward closures if they fail to improve hygiene levels in yet another Government attempt to crack down on superbugs.

Health Secretary Alan Johnson said he aimed to eliminate MRSA and significantly reduce rates of other infections in a new zero tolerance campaign.

He outlined plans for a new regulator which will conduct regular hygiene checks in hospitals and close down wards or impose unspecified fines if necessary.

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Ward round: Health Secretary Alan Johnson visits a local hospital yesterday

And he detailed proposals to make the NHS more userfriendly for patients, with doctors' surgeries opening at weekends and evenings.

The Government would reshape the NHS to become "clinically-led and locally-driven", he said, adding: "GP surgeries should be open at times and in locations that suit the patient, not the practice.

A plan to 'deep clean' hospitals - which has been dismissed as a one-off gimmick which will have no lasting impact - should be seen in the context of a range of other initiatives to tackle hospitalacquired infections, he insisted.

He wanted to see a 'zero' incidence of MRSA in hospitals and pointed to the example of the Netherlands, which has almost eliminated infections with a tough approach.

"We have a target of reducing it by 50 per cent - I want to get it down to zero."

Mr Johnson also announced that thousands of NHS staff are to be issued with personal safety alarms as part of a fresh drive to crack down on violence and abuse.

Around 30,000 who spend time working alone - during night shifts on wards or community visits, for example - will be issued with the devices.

Vulnerable staff will be issued with safety alarms and a £97 million fund is supposed to increase prosecutions against violent patients and relatives.

Mr Johnson admitted that more midwives are needed, but promised an increase of only 1,000 by 2009. Campaigners say 5,000 is the minimum needed by 2012.

He also claimed Labour had rescued the NHS and said the Tories were a "major risk" to the service.

"In 1997 the NHS required intensive care. The 10 years since has seen greater investment, more staff, reduced waiting times, new hospitals and radically improved survival rates," he said.

"Having increased capacity we can now concentrate remorselessly on quality, access and safety creating a higher standard of personal service."

The plans were applauded by health union Unison, which said NHS staff were relieved not to be "harangued" on their performance.

But midwife campaigners will say the 1,000 extra staff falls far short of the 5,000 extra that are really needed. There are more than 18,860 in Britain.

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Clean-up: Alan Johnson and Gordon Brown at the conference yesterday

The tough measures on superbugs will apply across the private sector as well as the NHS and follow a string of new rules to crack down on MRSA and C. difficile.

Gordon Brown has already ordered hospitals to carry out "deep cleaning" once a year, banned doctors' white coats and given matrons more powers to report to boards.

But today's plans are far more controversial, with hospital bosses shamed into meeting targets through fines and ward closures.

Mr Johnson said: "Too many patients feel insecure in hospital because of their fear of infection ... to ensure patients' safety I want a regulator with the power to close, clean and then re-open wards if necessary.

"We will equip the new regulator with tougher powers, backed by fines, to inspect, investigate and intervene where hospitals are failing to meet hygiene standards."

Sources said the new regulator should "hurt" hospitals that do not do enough to rid their corridors of infection, but fines will be largely symbolic.

Mr Johnson was applauded as he promised to improve protection for the 60,000 or so NHS workers who are assaulted by patients or their relatives each year.

He told delegates: "We know there is no more important resource for the NHS than the staff who work for it. But too many suffer harassment, intimidation and violence.

"Anybody who abuses our staff must face touch action and the possibility of jail."

Dave Prentis, Unison general secretary, hailed the move, saying: "It was very refreshing to hear a Health Secretary talk about the real issues, rather than harangues about health workers being the problem."

Mr Johnson also said more needed to be done to reduce inequalities, repeated plans to increase GP numbers in deprived communities and said family doctors would be pressured to make opening hours more convenient.

He repeated promises to offer primary care in pharmacies and sports centres, and said further moves were needed to overcome obesity and smoking and improve mental health services.

In a final flourish, Mr Johnson rounded on the "shabby and dishonest" Tories, saying: "They say they support the NHS, having opposed its creation vehemently 60 years ago... at worst they are regressive, at best they are a major risk."

Delegates complained about access to GP services.

However, ministers said Lord Darzi, who is carrying out a major review of the NHS, would unveil plans to solve the problem in a fortnight.

Commenting on Lord Darzi, the leading surgeon who is carrying out the review, Mr Johnson said: "While the Conservatives always had ministers who could stitch you up, we've got one who can cut you open as well."

JOWELL SALUTE TO THE STREET GANGS' SKILLS

Tessa Jowell was ridiculed yesterday after declaring that members of street gangs have "formidable entrepreneurial and leadership skills".

The Olympics Minister told a conference fringe meeting that part of her own constituency in South-East London had seen 12 murders since April this year, mostly shootings of young men.

"I have spent a lot of time talking to these young people in gangs and what is quite heartbreaking is their ambitions are exactly the same as the kinds of things our children want for themselves.

"They want careers, not jobs. They want to feel safe, they want to have money so that they can have a decent life. But at some point in their life they have given up and felt nobody was on their side, nobody was looking out for them."

Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: "The victims of some of these villains will recoil with horror at Tessa Jowell's comments.

"It's one thing to want to tackle the causes of crime..It's another entirely to praise some nonexistent virtues of people who cause such grief."

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