MRSA Action
Annual General Meeting held at Welcome The Annual General Meeting was well attended and Phil Barnes of Anthony Collins Solicitors welcomed everyone as host to the meeting. Our President Professor Hugh Pennington was unable to attend, he gave his sincere apologies. He was chairing the hearings in Derek Butler thanked everyone for their hard work over the last year, and for attending the AGM. He gave a report on the busy year we had experienced since the last AGM, one of the many events discussed was the TV appearance on The Richard and Judy Show in July. Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan had autographed a picture of Hayleigh. Edwina made it a very special day for Hayleigh by presenting her with the autographed picture. Guest Speaker Edwina Currie Edwina outlined that when she was invited to be Patron the reason she was able to say yes was she had just stood down from one organisation that had wound up, she was the Patron of the Human BSE Foundation set up some years ago. She had joined following the Phillips enquiry in 1997, demanding compensation for patients, victims and families. The illness had produced a Search and Destroy policy, there had been 160 deaths. A compensation scheme emerged and people have now been paid out, at a meeting in A rising trend in deaths from MRSA Edwina reported on the latest figures available from the Office of National Statistics and handed out copies of the report. It showed the number of people whose death certificates had MRSA as the cause of death and those where MRSA was a contributory factor. In July-September in The ONS figures were showing an increase. Numbers for 2006 show a continuing rise. More than 1600 people a year are still dying. Men are more likely to die than women - is there a clue somewhere? The older you get the more likely you are to succumb to MRSA. News releases imply improvement, but the figures speak for themselves News releases imply that things are very much better. There were 50,000 cases now, when we lay the wreath we will be laying it for those people - the equivalent to 2 train crashes a week. C diff amounts to twice as many as those killed on the roads. Recent initiatives had included providing 5,000 more Modern Matrons, is she paid the same as an ordinary nurse, sister, a lot more? How many patients do they nurse - none. This was the equivalent of 5,000 more managers. Edwina had been invited as a judge for Nursing Standards nurse awards in March. For the first time ever they have a patients' award - they had been inundated with correspondence and letters, patients wanted to highlight the work of the nurses, people with long term conditions, a person who looks after carers. Over and over again, nomination for ward sister, they run a tight ship, her ward is spotless and the staff adore her. We don't need more managers - the ward sister or charge nurse would say nobody goes out of my ward and back into intensive care - the ward was crowded and busy - but the surgeon insisted on that standard. That's what's required discipline on the ward, we don't need more managers.
Better regulation is needed The Healthcare Commission were beginning to do their job properly. It has been confusing and it can get expensive. They have taken photos, and they have gone back to But we still had doctors not washing their hands. What happened on our railways after about the second or third event, the law is changing that, they can be prosecuted, there have been a small number of very senior people prosecuted - it's put the wind up these people - the railways are now safer. On Thursday January 24 2008 there was £75,000 pay off for the Chief Executive with 90 deaths from C.diff attributable to her name. She should have been sacked and prosecuted. It was now compulsory to be tested. The Veterans Association in Infections were now in the community Nursing homes may be better informed now, but visitors also needed to be careful with infection prevention and control. If you look at figures NHS Trusts are having fewer cases - are they being sent out to nursing homes to die? Everybody has to take responsibility Patients' families are not always careful - the nursing home environment is classed as the patients' home, Edwina believed patients needed to be tested on discharge, some homes may not be as good at infection prevention and control, there should be regular testing of staff. Phil Barnes said that under COSHH Regulations they should be checking to see that staff are clear.
There was a tendency to blame patients and their families. The NHS had let standards slip and become complacent. The campaign continues. Business of the AGM
The business of the AGM followed and The Board of Trustees stood down in readiness for the election for the coming year.
The Chair thanked everyone for their hard work and continuing support. The membership then took the opportunity to vote. The following were elected as Trustees, and their subsequent elected positions are shown.
Derek Butler (Chair) Dale Law (Vice Chair) Paul Kelly (Vice Chair) Maria Cann (Secretary) Mavis Law (Treasurer) Nicola Mayers Sharon Law Our thanks go to former Trustees Tom Snowball, Moya Stevenson, Claude Newson and Linda McCafferty, and to Linda Gregg Inverness representative, for the support they have given to MRSA Action UK. Thank you also to Anthony Collins Solicitors for hosting the event. Derek Butler Chair MRSA Action UK 14th March 2008 07762 741114
Anthony Collins Solicitors
Saturday 8th March 2008
Following the delivery of the Chair's report for the year, our guest speaker and Patron, Edwina Currie, gave a speech and opened a discussion with members on healthcare infections and recent developments.
Edwina talks about the rising trends in deaths
attributable to MRSA