THE NUMBER of hospital deaths linked to the C.diff superbug has fallen dramatically in the Lothians.
New figures show the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary and Western General are performing well compared to most major hospitals in Scotland, with some of the lowest death rates in the country.
According to the new Health Protection Scotland report, C.diff
was the underlying cause of six deaths over the last six months, and present in a further 17 cases.
NHS Lothian has worked hard to minimise the threat of C.diff, which has overtaken MRSA as the most feared superbug in Scotland.
The C.diff rate for NHS Lothian in January to March of this year was down a third on the same months in 2007, from 2.06 cases per 1000 occupied bed days by people over 65 – who are the most vulnerable – to 1.26 cases.
The Scottish Government demanded a report with new figures from all health boards following an outbreak at the Vale of Leven Hospital, in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, which claimed the lives of 13 people and was a factor in five other deaths.
NHS Lothian has also been the victim of its own vigilance.
The Western General and Edinburgh Royal Infirmary have the highest rates of C.diff among patients under the age of 65, but the report said this was probably due to higher testing rates compared to other health boards.
NHS Lothian also believes there has been some inaccurate reporting by junior doctors and the true figure is lower.
HPS praised NHS Lothian's plans to reduce the use of antibiotics – which kills good bacteria leaving the body vulnerable to infection – saying it should have an impact on C.diff cases. So far it has been shown to halve the number of cases.
The health board has also piloted voice-boxes that remind hospital staff, patients and visitors to wash their hands, and ultraviolet lights which show whether they have been washed effectively.
It believes it is winning the war on C.diff and the other deadly superbug, MRSA. The two contributed to the deaths of 375 people in Lothian hospitals over seven years.
Dr Alison McCallum, director of public health and health policy at NHS Lothian, said: "We are pleased to see external experts recognising the strength of our surveillance systems on healthcare-associated infection and suggesting that other boards might like to put similar arrangements in place. While screening of all cases of C.diff infections in people over 65 is mandatory, NHS Lothian goes further and tracks all cases from the age of one up.
"We already comply with the recommendations made, and will work with the Scottish Government on any new developments. For instance, we already have computerised tracking systems to detect cases and we already review severe cases to see where lessons can be learned."
MRSA rates in Lothian have dropped by nearly 20 per cent since October 2007, having been stable for the previous five years.
