Surge in superbug infections at Tipperary hospital

A surge in infections caused by a drug-resistant superbug at a Co Tipperary hospital may be the result of overcrowding and poor standards of cleanliness, according to the State’s health watchdog.

Staff from the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa) abandoned a planned inspection of South Tipperary General Hospital in Clonmel last March after finding five patients being treated in the reception area.

Their report says the space was a thoroughfare for patients, visitors and staff, located by the coffee dock. The patients had no access to monitoring equipment and were at immediate high risk to their safety.

“The use of the reception area to accommodate patients admitted to hospital did not provide an acceptable level of safety, privacy or dignity for patients and was unacceptable to Hiqa.”

The hospital acknowledged the patients were being accommodated inappropriately and blamed this on significant overcrowding over a period of months.

The Hiqa inspectors remained onsite until the hospital addressed the issue by freeing up other beds in clinical areas to which the patients were transferred.

A further inspection two weeks later uncovered further immediate high risk findings, requiring immediate remediation, according to Hiqa.

Inspectors said the quality of cleaning in surgical areas was very poor, with unacceptable level of dust on most surfaces. Organic matter or contamination was present on trolleys, a toilet brush and a radiator.

The paediatric unit was described as not fit for purpose, with insufficient spatial separation in multi-bedded rooms.

The rates of C diff, a drug-resistant superbug, at the hospital have increased from seven in 2013 to 19 in 2014 and 26 last year. This is significantly above the national average.

The report says the trend is more than likely due to antibiotic consumption patterns but adds that environmental contamination should also be considered as a factor “on the background of an overcrowded hospital with persistently high activity levels and within the context of poor standards of cleanliness”.

Hiqa sent the hospital a number of written warnings and found improvements in a third inspection in April, but says further improvements are needed.