The workshop provided practical guidance to support the programme and an opportunity for staff to interact and feedback on progress.  The five key performance indicators to measure the actions to tackle infections outside of hospital include

-        The percentage of admissions to hospital from a Care Home accompanied by the management plan, including healthcare associated infection status / screening

-        The percentage of discharges from hospital to a Care Home accompanied by the discharge summary, including healthcare associated infection status / screening

-         Number of antibiotic cases each month for the Care Home residents

-         Type of antibiotic prescribed each month for the Care Home residents

-        The percentage of Care Home staff who have been trained in healthcare associated infection preventative hygiene techniques

Measuring actions against outcomes was a way of assessing whether the actions being implemented were having an impact on improvement.  Evidence from the programme was showing measurable improvements, for example there had been a reduction in the use of certain antibiotics that were more likely to cause C.diff in other regions.
 
Dr Bharat Patel, Consultant Medical Microbiologist at The Health Protection Agency, London presented Essential Steps and Care Bundles Within a Care Home Setting, using the Department of Health tools and techniques to reduce the risks of giving a patient an infection.  The presentation demonstrated that assiduous application of the techniques will make a significant contribution to the drive to achieve no avoidable infections in any care setting. In his breakout session Dr Patel presented Theories, Enigmas and Practical Approaches to infection prevention and control in the Care Home setting, examining case studies and practical responses to ensure effective action for the best patient outcomes. 

Martin Kiernan, President of the Infection Prevention Society gave an interesting and thought provoking presentation Bad Bugs Have No Boundaries.  It featured Florence Nightingale's approach to saving lives in the Crimean War at Scutari.  Patients at the Barracks Hospital experienced a 42 per cent mortality rate.  Florence Nightingale took over and mortality reduced to 2 per cent.  She created order, provided trained nurses, developed standards and changed the hospital design and ethos.  She focused on cleaning and sanitation, we can learn from history those standards are equally applicable to today's caring environment.

Integrated Care Pathways, A Whole Healthcare Focus for Patients & Carers -
Derek Butler, Chair MRSA Action UK

Derek's presentation showed just how important communication and working together is in the care environment.  Integrated Care Pathways can be used to ensure a whole healthcare focus for patients, before and after they are admitted to hospital.  Case studies showed how important it was for patients' infection status to be recorded and information passed on, for the safe recuperation of patients.  The presentation featured the Lincolnshire Care Pathways Partnership Integrated Care Pathway, and pictorial guide for patients.  The new inter-healthcare form is now also available for patients or residents who transfer between healthcare providers to pass on important information about their infection status and can be downloaded here.  The form can help achieve the objective of increasing the number of patients admitted to hospital from a Care Home who are accompanied by the management plan, including healthcare associated infection status / screening.

MRSA Action UK's presentation is aligned to the Assessment Framework's Change Principle 1, Adopt a multi-agency approach to ensure effective co-ordination of nursing and personal care to prevent and control healthcare associated infections