First hospital report published

Stirling Royal was the first hospital to be visited by the inspectors

Scotland's newly-appointed hospital inspectorate has published its first report since being established earlier this year.

The independent Healthcare Environment Inspectorate said Stirling Royal Infirmary needed to tighten up its infection control procedures.

The inspectorate was set up by the Scottish government in April.

A major part of its remit is to help prevent the spread of infections like MRSA and C.Diff.

Every acute hospital in Scotland will receive at least one announced and one unannounced inspection within the three year inspection cycle, with extra visits as required.

The inspectorate, which is headed by chief inspector Susan Brimelaw, made its first visit to Stirling Royal on 29 September.

In its report, the inspectorate said the hospital was performing well in many areas, but also requested that Forth Valley Health Board makes a number of improvements.

'Independent scrutiny'

These included ensuring the roles of members of the infection control team are more clearly defined, making sure all staff are aware of hospital acquired infection surveillance procedures, and ensuring that cleaning schedules are consistent across the organisation.

Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon said the report heralded "an era of unprecedented transparency and greater scrutiny for the health service."

She added: "It is vital that the public have absolute confidence in the care they will receive if they need hospital treatment. The unprecedented level of rigorous independent scrutiny provided by the inspectorate will help to instil that confidence.

"While primarily established as part of our drive to wipe out so-called superbugs, the inspectorate will also turn its attention to all aspects of the hospital care environment.

"Today's report highlights that NHS Forth Valley is working well for local people in many ways. However, the report highlights that there is room for improvement and points out where progress could be made."

Theresa Fyffe, the director of RCN Scotland, commented: "Patients and families will be reassured that the inspections of hospitals by the new Healthcare Environment Inspectorate are now underway.

"After the plethora of initiatives aimed at tackling healthcare associated infections (HAIs) over the past year, the time is right now for the Scottish Government and health boards to take stock of all of the action plans and programmes that are now in place and to provide staff with clarity on their responsibilities.

"They must then ensure that the resources are in place to allow all healthcare staff to deliver safe and effective care whilst minimising the risk of healthcare associated infections."