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Health
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A FRAMEWORK FOR NATIONAL SURVEILLANCE OF HOSPITAL ACQUIRED INFECTION IN SCOTLAND Summary This letter alerts you to the report of the sub-group of the Health Department's Advisory Group on Infection. It has recommended that a national system of surveillance of Hospital Acquired Infection (HAI) be set up. The Minister for Health and Community Care has accepted the report. NHS Trusts are therefore required to implement the report's recommendations as they apply to them. The contents of this letter should be drawn to the attention of Trust Infection Control Committees and other relevant bodies. The Executive Summary of the report is attached. The full report is available at the SHOW website: http://www.show.scot.nhs.uk/sehd. Action NHS Trusts 1. All Trusts are required to establish mechanisms for collection of data on MRSA bacteraemias by autumn this year, and to make these data available by April 2002. 2. All Trusts are required to implement surveillance of in-patient surgical site infection (SSI) for at least two operative procedures from a specified list including one orthopaedic procedure. Trusts should put structures in place to collect this information by April 2002, with surveillance data to be available from all Trusts by 2003. 3. All Trusts undertaking neurosurgery should have surveillance of HAI following neurosurgical procedures in place by April 2002. |
6th
July 2001
Addresses |
Additional
Information
The Scottish Health Plan, "Our National Health: a plan for action, a plan for change" makes clear that the Executive places particular importance on infection control, hospital cleanliness and the safety of the hospital environment and it expects NHS Trusts to ensure that the recommendations of the Scottish Infection Manual have been put in place. Appropriate surveillance of HAI is a key step in the monitoring and reduction of infection rates. The sub-group's report sets out a framework for national HAI surveillance in which national data on HAI in Scotland will be compiled from the data generated by standardised surveillance activity in Trusts. It is expected that surveillance data will also be used locally to improve performance in tackling HAI and reducing infection rates. The national system is based on central-local collaboration between the Scottish Centre for Infection and Environmental Health (SCIEH) and NHS Trusts. SCIEH will facilitate and co-ordinate the local surveillance programmes and collate data at a national level on behalf of the Department. SCIEH will also compile national reports with annual reporting of HAI incidence from 2002. SCIEH will help disseminate good practice and is charged with developing and implementing a system for collecting data on incidents/ outbreaks of hospital infection. As regards resources, the Department expects Trusts to implement the recommendations within the increased allocations made available through Health Boards this year, and within indicative allocations for future years. Increased resources are being made available to support infrastructure and national initiatives relevant to countering HAI. In particular the Department is funding an expanded national training programme for infection control nurses to help increase numbers in response to expected growth in demand for their skills. The Department is also increasing funding available for SCIEH to support its central facilitating and co-ordinating role for the new surveillance system. A multidisciplinary Steering Group will be set up by SCIEH to oversee and facilitate implementation of and ensure strategic direction for the planned national surveillance system. The HAI Surveillance Steering Group will be asked to develop plans for post-discharge surveillance of SSI by the end of this year. The Advisory Group on Infection's sub-group is now addressing the issue of anti-microbial resistance surveillance, and will shortly be making recommendations on this.
GERRY MARR
A
FRAMEWORK FOR NATIONAL SURVEILLANCE OF HOSPITAL Recommendations
of the Advisory Group on Infection’s Sub-group on Surveillance
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