12 June 2009
Nigel Ellis, Head of National Assessment and Inspection at the Care Quality Commission said, "The NAO is right to acknowledge improvements in the control of MRSA and C. difficile, which have had such a strong grip on hospitals in this country. This follows a big effort from people right across the NHS - and we are of course pleased that the report recognises the role that independent regulation has played.
"While the NHS as a whole is doing better, there are still individual trusts that have a great deal of room for improvement. So no one should be complacent. Everyone involved has to continue to drive down the rates of healthcare-associated infections - and that includes all infections, not just MRSA and C. difficile.
"We will keep up the pressure and encourage the NHS to stay focussed on improvements. That will include taking swift enforcement action if we find unacceptable performance."
Notes to editors
The NAO publishes its third report on HCAIs Reducing Healthcare Associated Infections in Hospitals in England, on 12 June 2009.
About the CQC: Snippet for press releases
About the Care Quality Commission
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and social care in England.
We make sure health and social care services provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care and we encourage care services to improve.
We monitor, inspect and regulate services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety and we publish what we find to help people choose care.