Labour's "extraordinary" infections boast attacked

Andrew Lansley has attacked an “extraordinary” boast from Labour's new Health Secretary, Andy Burnham the day new figures revealed that cases of both Clostridium difficile and MRSA are on the rise.

Responding to Andy Burnham’s claim that he is “proud” of Labour’s record on tackling infection rates, Mr. Lansley said:

“These figures expose Labour’s complacency and their failure to tackle this blight on our hospitals.”

The Shadow Health Secretary also criticised Labour’s lack of real action on infections, highlighting gimmicks like Gordon Brown’s flawed “deep-cleaning” programme, and he added:

“A Conservative Government would take a zero tolerance approach to hospital infections. We are committed to doubling the number of single rooms in NHS hospitals so that all patients who need to be isolated can be.”

(DH) New Health Secretary sets out vision for a people centred NHS - New emphasis on quality, innovation and prevention

A new era in the National Health Service that builds on targets achieved and prioritises quality of care was set out by new Health Secretary Andy Burnham today.

Addressing an audience of senior NHS leaders and managers at the NHS Confederation's annual conference, Mr Burnham pledged a 'deep clean' of superfluous national targets in favour of clearer, simpler standards and said that quality was "the route map through the funding challenges on the horizon".

Mr Burnham described the impact of the economic downturn on the NHS as a "moment of opportunity, not threat" and set out how improving the quality of health services - with a greater focus on preventing illness and disease - will lead to both a better patient experience and greater efficiency, helping the NHS meet the financial challenges ahead.

Announcing work to develop and introduce a new minimum standard for the NHS to eliminate all preventable MRSA infections, Mr Burnham said:

"The NHS has made huge progress. But I want it to go from good to world-class, moving away from numbers and towards what matters most - the patient's experience.

"On MRSA, infections have been reduced by 65% since 2003. I have asked the National Quality board to help develop a new minimum standard that will ensure all hospitals drive down MRSA bloodstream infections to the levels currently being achieved by the best performers - making the NHS even safer for staff and patients. I want this to be fairer - taking into account local differences - based on clear evidence and developed together with NHS staff and stakeholders.

"Reducing infections makes sense not just for patients, but for the NHS's finances too. Cutting cases of MRSA and C. difficile not only saves many lives, it also saved the NHS at least £75 million last year."

The Health Secretary also announced that from 2010-11 the top performing NHS Primary Care Trusts will be rewarded with greater freedom and flexibility to enable them to deliver more improvements, more quickly to their local communities.

This elite group of PCTs who have made the most significant impact in improving the quality of healthcare in their local communities, ensuring patients get the best possible treatment and leading the way on preventing disease - for example quitting smoking services - will benefit from greater control over how they operate.

Mr Burnham added:

"Innovation, efficiency, productivity and prevention are what should drive the next stage in creating a people-centred NHS. The best primary care trusts are ably demonstrating that they can respond to the health needs of the people they serve - in particular, tackling the causes of ill health as well as treating it.

"In line with Lord Darzi's Next Stage Review, I want these top performers to have even further powers, with greater freedoms and more scope to innovate - for instance being able to set longer term plans and preferential access to the new Innovation Fund.

"We cannot underestimate the importance of preventing disease. It is estimated that if PCTs improve their performance on key health outcomes such as smoking, alcohol, cardio vascular disease mortality, diabetes and stroke over the next five years this could result in a 10-15% reduction in health inequalities."

(DH) NHS healthchecks to help reduce heart attacks, strokes, diabetes and kidney disease - Preventative checks will soon be available in England -

NHS Health Checks, which could prevent 1600 heart attacks and strokes each year and help save 650 lives will begin from April this year, announced Health Secretary Alan Johnson today.

The Health Secretary also announced the start of two further groundbreaking measures - the abolition of prescription charges for cancer patients and the start of MRSA screening for elective patients.

Everyone aged between 40-74 in England will begin to be invited for a free health check as part of a national programme to identify their risk of diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes and kidney disease. The programme is an essential tool in tackling health inequalities across the country.

The health checks are part of a drive to ensure that people from this age group have the necessary information about their health in order to make important lifestyle changes and reduce their risks of developing diseases like diabetes and coronary heart disease. These illnesses currently affect the lives of 4 million people in England and are responsible for a fifth of all hospital admissions.

The checks are part of the drive towards a more preventative NHS.

The health checks will consist of:

* Straightforward questions to patients on their health and diet, exercise habits and family medical history
* Height and weight measurements taken from patients
* A simple blood test for cholesterol and in some cases for glucose levels
* A follow up, personal assessment setting out the individual's level of risk and what they can do to reduce this
* Recommendations of what could be done to reduce risk including: weight management programmes, stop smoking, physical activity programmes

Local Primary Care Trusts are designing their own local implementation plans to make sure that they can deliver the checks and follow up services that will be best suit the needs of the local population.

Health Secretary Alan Johnson said:

"The NHS is becoming more personal and responsive to individual needs; becoming as good at prevention and keeping people healthy as it is at providing care and cures; and able to offer the information and support people need to make healthy choices.

"There are a number of different commitments that we are delivering on which will start from this April. The national programme of Health Checks could save 650 lives a year and reduce the health inequalities that blight the lives of the country's most deprived families.

"Screening of all relevant elective patients for MRSA before admission is an and additional preventative measure that will help to protect patients against infection, and also, free prescriptions for people living with cancer and related conditions is one less worry for them at such a difficult time and will be welcomed by many patients and their families."

The preventative checks will be rolled out across England from April and will be fully implemented by 2012/13. They are likely to be available at GP surgeries, health centres, walk in centres and pharmacies to ensure as many people benefit from them as possible.

Further measures to protect patient's health being delivered by the NHS on April 1 include all NHS Trusts being able to offer MRSA screening to all relevant elective patients. This will allow the NHS to reduce the chances of patients getting an MRSA infection, or passing MRSA onto another patient. Although the number of people getting infections from MRSA is falling (latest figures show reductions of 38 per cent), we still have further to go and this is part of our continued efforts to reduce numbers even further.

April 1 is also the date when the abolition of NHS prescription charges for everyone undergoing treatment for cancer, the effects of cancer, or the effects of cancer treatment, will also come in to effect. Up to 150,000 patients already diagnosed with cancer are expected to benefit, saving them £100 or more each year in prescription charges.