C Difficile a factor in 1 out of 250 hospital deaths. Just how seriously does your hospital take it?

[Miaou]

New item here

This is the bit I find most depressing: "No one wants to be treated in a dirty hospital but sadly the culture of cleaning was sold off at the same time as compulsory competitive tendering was brought in." - from the head of Unison.

In my local hospital they seem to be pretty good - I was in surgical ward for four days last October and I thought the cleaning was exemplary - showers spotless, all surfaces wiped down every day, and the cleaners told us that they "clear" a ward once a week and clean it from top to bottom (including walls, curtain rails and light fittings). Plus the usual hand gel stuff outside each ward.

But I do wonder how typical this is.

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the ward where I regularly work has regular cleaners so they become part of the team and therefore the work is carried out to an amazing standard.
However on some wards you get some young immigrant who clearly couldnt care less whether the ward is clean as long as he gets to stay here (sorry not very pc but very true).

C. Diff seems to be rife at the mo, its on every ward i work on and sometimes cannot be contained due to lack of isolation beds

In your experience mosschops, is it lack of committment to cleanliness that creates this problem, then?

Very. ALL visitors, and I mean ALL are instructed to wash their hands when they come into either building.

Cleaning is fab here. All patients are swabbed for MRSA and CDiff before admission.

I dont know if it makes a difference that we are a private hospital....?

probably, vvv. After all, a private hospital can presumably "sell" themselves on their cleanliness in a way that NHS hospitals don't need to (just surmising here).

With the new commissioning structures in the NHS, NHS hospitals will be in competition with each other rather more, which mean sthey will be able to 'sell' themsleves on things like cleanliness, clinical quality and pretty buildings...
That's the theory anyway.

Not difficult to sell ourselves when you look at our comparators, is it

People's attitudes play a big part though. Most people behave in an utterly different manner in a private hospital. Almost as if it is expected that they should be on their best behaviour, so religiously sign in, wash their hands etc etc.

When I was in hospital with DS after emergency C section, I found a huge cockroach crawling in the bathroom! I freaked out and told the nurse and she looked at me as if to say WTF its not my job and huffed off.....I'm not expecting her to get a glass and get it out cos it isn't her job but at least mention it to cleaners!!!

The ward was minging really - bring back Hattie Jaques type scary matrons who freak if see one speck of dust!!!

cockroaches are quite commonplace. Especially in the older type hospitals with antiquated heating/venting systems.