Dec 2008 23

Richard Branson on hospital infections3

Richard Branson might seem an unlikely candidate to speak out on hospital infections, but he is vice-President of the Patient's Association and today has made a stinging attack on the numbers suffering from hospital infection.  While infection rates are falling they are still alarmingly high:

The entrepreneur – whose daughter Holly is a doctor – told the BBC: "There have been some improvements, but the facts speak for themselves – and the facts are still horrific.

"It feels like they have tinkered with the problem rather than really got to the heart of the problem. The hospitals are there to cure people. They are not there to kill people."

[...]

"In the airline industry if we had that kind of track record we would have been grounded years ago," he said.

"In the airline industry if there is an adverse event that information is sent out to every airline in the world.

"And every airline makes absolutely certain that that adverse event doesn't happen twice."

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  • Hardeep Singh

    Indeed as the chap from the BMA stated that running an airline is not the same as running a health service. I agree an airline is a PROFESSIONAL organisation to say the least where the health service seems to have dropped it’s emphasis on ‘service’.
    Having relatives and loved ones become ill due to MRSA or other third party issue is unforgivable however todays so called modern NHS allows this lax attitude to prosper, not at patients expense it shouldn’t. The chap from the BAM is really trying to say don’t come here with your professional, pratical and meaningful ideas we don’t want outsiders disrupting our unaccountable empire. Though the same people have been very quiet on the very issue of such bugs in the meantime.
    There can be no comparison between airline industry and NHS they are a gulf apart.

  • http://birminghamuserwatch.blogspot.com/ Silvis Rivers

    There are a number of factors you might wish to consider surrounding developing this story . The Govt saw fit to rid itself in March 2008 of the PPI Forums (with the job of monitoring the patient perspective) some of whom were developing sharp little teeth that the DOH were not keen on . The Local Involvement Networks taking over now are a bit of joke so far.
    Simultaneously embedded in all of this period the Trusts are developing Foundation Trust (FT) status . Health and Overview (statutory) Scrutiny Committee’s (HOSC’s) are not getting much information from FT Trusts – and this is becoming a shared concern amongst some of them (try Coventry and Birmingham) – added into this is the lack of information coming out of FT Trusts – check it and you will find as each NHS Trust became an FT the information they generated for public domain status became radically less … Further added into this is the new “Governors” of FT Trusts – which sadly once again are a bit of Joke .. A couple of Trusts claim they have made some Users and carers into “mystery shoppers” as a patient involvement and monitoring scheme . You might like to check with NALM (an independent group “National Association Links Members) ..
    So here we have the ingredients for a lack of accountability-cake at a chimps party Which is a mess and is unhygenic . And frankly I admit I too have monkeyed about trying to clean up with the other chimps ..

  • R McKie

    My wife is a nurse and she notes that the primary reason for the increase in infections is the very poor standards of hygene procedure by many nurses and doctors. Staff are allowed to get away with breaking the rules. The answer is simply to impose and enforce high standards; no compromise with lax behaviour by staff (sack people if they keep breaking the rules) and put Matrons in charge of each ward (not the paperwork) would improve things dramatically.
    Hygene standards matter, for example: moving between patients with the same gloves and apron on, not washing hands between patients and poor cleaning by contractor staff are unacceptable. Another key issue is to bring back the NHS’s own cleaning staff so that Ward Sisters and Matrons have a clear line management and responsibility for cleaning of the wards rather than a weak ‘customer’ relationship with a contractor. We have become a third world country when it comes to cleanliness in our medical facilities.