HEALTH bosses are pleased with the progress being made to prevent hospital ‘superbugs’, after reporting a massive reduction in cases since 2009.

The rate of hospital-acquired infections is a key performance measure for any hospital, and data obtained by the Lancashire Telegraph suggested major improvements have been made across East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust’s five sites.

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The figures showed a year-on-year reduction in Clostridium difficile (C-diff), a bacterial infection affecting the digestive system, from 90 cases in 2009/10 to just 24 in 2013/14.

C-diff, which commonly affects patients who have been treated with antibiotics, can cause vomiting, fever and abdominal cramps, and can lead to potentially life-threatening complications.

The wards which recorded the most cases last year were C18 at the Royal Blackburn, with four, and C3, also at the Royal Blackburn, with three, although bosses stressed infections were not always acquired where the sample is taken.

Ian Stanley, the trust’s director of infection prevention and control, said: “Every year NHS England sets tough targets in an attempt to eliminate health care associated infections.

“While keeping infections to a minimum remains a challenge, the trust has a good track record of reducing infections with one of the lowest rates in the country for Clostridium difficile, about half the national average. We know that taking antibiotics can lead to C-diff, particularly in older people and those with weakened immune systems.

“For this reason, we continue to work with our clinicians, GPs and our local clinical commissioning groups to ensure appropriate prescribing of antibiotics.”

The trust is aiming to have no more than 23 cases of C-diff this financial year.

There are stricter targets for MRSA, a life-threatening bacterial infection that is resistant to a number of widely used antibiotics, so despite a year-on-year reduction since 2009, from eight cases to three, the target of ‘zero’ was still missed last year.

Two cases were recorded in critical care at Blackburn, with one case in ward D5.

Dr Stanley added: “Infection prevention is everyone’s responsibility.”