GWH takes action to reduce death rates (From Swindon Advertiser)

GWH takes action to reduce death rates

7:10am Monday 30th March 2009 in

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THE number of patients dying at the Great Western Hospital was one of the highest in the country because of a superbug.

The hospital had the joint fourth worst unexpected death rate, according to figures published in the Sunday Telegraph yesterday.

The figures from Dr Foster, the independent health information firm, showed that The Great Western Hospital’s NHS Foundation Trust, which runs the GWH, had a Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratio (HSMR) of 120 – a figure of 100 means results are directly in line with expectations.

But that figure has now been cut to 95 thanks to new practices of cutting down the number of patients infected by superbug Clostridium Difficile.

“The mortality rates quoted for the period 2006 to 2008 do appear higher than average,” said medical director Alf Troughton.

“At the time these were first published the Trust investigated the reasons why they appeared high and identified several reasons why ours were above average, which included incorrect coding and Clostridium Difficile.”

The hospital has been prescribing fewer antibiotics so less patients contract the bug, Mr Troughton said. It has also upped its cleaning standards to bring down infection levels and introduced tests for patients before they undergo surgery.

North Wiltshire MP James Gray said he was shocked to discover the Trust’s mortality rates were worse than those of The Staffordshire Hospital, which hit the headlines last week after it was revealed that hundreds of patients died due to “appalling” standards of care.

Mr Gray said: “I am very concerned about the statistics showing that the GWH had such a high mortality rate compared to other hospitals.

“I would certainly like to look into what caused this.”

Coun Peter Mallinson, chairman of Swindon Council’s health scrutiny committee, said he also wanted to find out more.

“It is disappointing to hear about this, but I would like to know the cause of the deaths,” he said.

“I will be asking for more information from the hospital. It is difficult to assess the situation until we know the exact causes of the deaths.”

Coun Kevin Small, a non-executive director at the hospital, said: “We have a monthly board meeting and the death rates are always reported,” he said.

“The numbers are going in the right direction.”

And a GWH nurse, who does not want to be named, said the statistics were unfair. She said: “I think the hospital does a great job. These figures can be misleading.

“Visitors bring infections into the hospital, which nurses would never do. Also sometimes patients put themselves in danger by not taking precautions before surgery.”

From April last year until this month, there were 72 cases of Clostridium Difficile and five cases of MRSA in the hospital.

Mr Troughton said that from April to December 2008, the HSMR at the hospital was 95.