New hygiene techniques considered

Strain 27 of clostridium difficile has proved hard to get rid of

One of the region's biggest health trusts is considering using a new way to eradicate the hospital superbug Clostridium difficile (C. diff).

There have been 49 deaths linked to the bug in Leicester.

Hospital bosses there are testing new detergents and a machine called R2 which uses hydrogen peroxide.

The technique, developed by a company based in Hampshire, has already been taken up by about 50 hospitals around the world.

Strain 27 of Clostridium difficile has proved hard to get rid of.

On Tuesday a ward remained shut in Nottingham's Queens Medical Centre and another one at Lincoln County hospital because of the bug.

Sylvia Greaves died at Leicester Royal Infirmary in May

The hydrogen peroxide technique was developed by Bioquell in Hampshire.

Zuffar Haq of Leicester Patients' Group said: "You have to decant a ward, meaning empty a ward, for 24 hours or 36 hours so that this can be done and then move on to the next ward.

"At the moment that's already happening with steam-cleaning, so it's no different to the steam-cleaning but it's just a different method of attack."

The move was considered to be long overdue by Barry Calow and Dawn Greaves whose mother Sylvia Greaves died at Leicester Royal Infirmary in May.

Clostridium difficile was listed as a contributory factor to the 69-year-old's death.

Mr Calow said: It should have been sorted a long time ago, because obviously they knew was there, obviously they knew people were going to catch it, it was going to be passed on."