Organisations must take responsibility for HCAIs warns RCN

Published: 30 July 2008

The RCN has said that organisations and management as well as individuals need to take responsibility for the management of healthcare associated infections (HCAIs). The College has warned that concentrating on issues such as hand washing alone will not address the situation and called on the Government to invest in more infection control nurses.

Highlighting the key role which nurses have, the RCN has called for support and clear authority for modern matrons to enable them to improve patient care, with stronger reporting mechanisms in place to enable nurses to raise their concerns about poor hygiene practices.

The comments follow the publication of an independent management of infection control report. The report found that strong leadership, appropriate staffing levels and better management of staff workloads should be as important as hand hygiene and environmental cleanliness in the battle to reduce HCAIs. The report also identified a number of other circumstances affecting the occurrence of outbreaks of infection including a multidisciplinary approach to infection control and low staff morale.

Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the RCN, said:

“There is rarely a single cause for outbreak of infection or a simple cure. But we hope that by increasing awareness of the risk factors leading to outbreaks of infection that we can better tackle the causes so that patients and their families are assured a safe and worry-free hospital stay”.

Hospital Organisation and Management Factors in Infection Control, is an independent report by King’s College, London, commissioned by the RCN.