How come the UK seems to have a problem with MRSA when other countries in Europe seem to have no such problem? What's the reason?

Aaron

As I understand it, other parts of Europe cope with MRSA not because they have immunity but because they have cleaner hospitals. It's a little worrying if our hospitals can't get basic hygiene right.

Aaron

The MRSA epidemic plaguing Britain's hospitals may be due to extremely transmissible contagious clones of the superbug, a scientist has claimed.

Dr Mark Enright, from the University of Bath, also said that better hospital hygiene would not be enough to prevent the spread of the infection.

In an article published in this month's edition of 'Microbiology Today', Dr Enright, an expert on the evolution and epidemiology of MRSA, said that the increase of infections in the UK coincided with the appearance of two clones, called UK Epidemic MRSA clone-15 and clone-16. These clones, Dr Enright said, were uncommon elsewhere in the world, and this could explain why MRSA infections had increased in Britain.
Dr Enright said that these clones were more contagious than other strains of the infection and claimed that the only way to stop the epidemic was by using proven measures, such as patient isolation.

Dr Enright said that there was little scientific evidence to prove that there were less MRSA infections in clean hospitals. He said: "Better hand hygiene will have some effect, but only a radical measure, such as isolating all patients with particularly transmissible MRSA strains, would really solve the problem."

MRSA mainly causes invasive disease following infection of tissues around devices placed in the body, such as venous catheters. Drugs that suppress patients' immune systems, such as those taken by kidney transplant patients, may also enable MRSA to take hold, Dr Enright said.

However, he admitted: "we simply don't know how MRSA comes into a hospital, colonises staff and patients and then causes serious disease."
Figures published in July 2004 showed that MRSA infections in England had increased by 3.6% in the last year.

Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Paul Burstow said that Dr Enright's research showed that the government needed to make infection control "a top priority". He said: "There is a shortage of isolation facilities in the NHS. Despite repeated questioning, Ministers haven't got a clue how many isolation facilities there are, let alone what plans there are to add more. Simply promoting hand washing is clearly not enough. More screening and isolation, when necessary, should all be considered as weapons in the fight against the superbugs."
In November, Health Secretary, John Reid announced plans to reduce the number of MRSA infections by half by 2008.

Recent government initiatives to try to stop the spread of the infection include the installation of alcohol rubs at every staff patient contact point; the launch of the Matron's Charter; and the appointment of Chief Nursing Officer, Chris Beasley, to oversee cleanliness and hygiene in hospitals.

As part of these initiatives, over one million NHS employees will receive additional training in infection control measures.

http://www.4ni.co.uk/nationalnews.asp?id=37552

Experts are divided over why MRSA has become so widespread in UK hospitals, in comparison with the rest of Europe (see section five). "Complacency, poor prescribing practice and misuse of antibiotics has led to the emergence of drug resistant infections", according to a report in 2000 by the UK Parliament. Fewer empty beds and high throughputs of patients prevent MRSA and other hospital-acquired infections being tackled effectively, according to the latest report by the National Audit Office.

Hospital-acquired infections can be reduced by strict hospital hygeine, frequent handwashing and a greater proportion of single rooms. The government has recently announced a CleanYourHands Campaign by the National Patient Safety Agency. This will involve hospitals placing disinfectant hand-rubs by each patient’s bed and an awareness campaign for medical staff on the importance of frequent handwashing. Tougher measures against MRSA also require less overcrowding, more empty beds and isolation wards to absorb the disruption of isolating the infection.

But, according to the National Audit Office report, there are wider factors in the UK which make it difficult to take necessary steps to prevent and control hospital infections. For example, government targets have led to higher bed occupancy, while staff shortages and the increased use of unqualified staff have compromised strict hygeine practices. In addition, there is the increasing problem of bacteria strains resistant to antibiotics.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/actionnetwork/A2836550#3