[Margaret Pilkington]

Lettie....I think you have hit the nail on the head. The policies about visiting definitely need to be looked at.......with maybe visitors only being allowed if they are carrying a visiting card. Visiting times need to be shortened except in circumstances where the patient is critically ill. Pre-operative screening is essential to identify those who are carrying MRSA before anything is done.......or maybe all surgical patients should be given 7 days supply of Aquasept wash to use on the 7 days preceding admission (with full instructions on how to use).

Domestic staff need to be recruited and given permanent work areas so that continuity of cleaning can be maintained.........as you so rightly observed Lettie, these measures are expensive.......but not nearly so expensive as a couple of court cases with patients suing for so called hospital acquired infection.

Oh, and the good news is that the Japanese think they have found something that will cure MRSA.......it is another bacteria that lives on shellfish in the sea.........won't be available for a while yet.