International reports that Malta has the worst incidence in Europe of the antibiotic-resistant superbug MRSA give a warped picture of reality, according to the government.
A new report warned that MRSA was reaching epidemic levels in European hospitals with Malta, Cyprus, Romania, Portugal and the UK being the five worst affected countries.
The data, published in the European Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System's annual report, showed that for the sixth year running the prevalence of MRSA was rising consistently across Europe.
MRSA (Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) is a type of bacteria commonly found on the skin and/or in the noses of healthy people. Although it is usually harmless at these sites, it may occasionally get into the body, through breaks in the skin such as abrasions, cuts, wounds, surgical incisions or indwelling catheters, and cause infection.
Hospital patients, as a result of their sometimes weakened immune systems, are particularly vulnerable to these resistant strains, as a result mainly of the misuse and abuse of antibiotics.
In the first six months of the year more than 250 cases of MRSA were registered in Malta.
The report, covered extensively in international media, said that just two countries, Slovenia and France, had managed to lower the infection rates by implementing the appropriate long-term control effects.
It warned that antimicrobial resistance was seriously threatening the successful and effective treatment of infections, resulting in an ever-increasing death toll and disease burden.
However, a government statement issued yesterday said that this interpretation did not take into account a number of factors, and painted "a much worse picture than reality suggests".
"The results of the report contain a significant bias in the case of Malta. Other countries have a mixture of tertiary and secondary hospitals, the latter having normally much lower MRSA levels since they are not as involved in intensive medical management," the statement said.
In Malta's case, the data simply referred to St Luke's Hospital, which meant the results were heavily skewed to the higher prevalence normally found in tertiary care.
The statement said that St Luke's Hospital was by no means the worst hospital and had far lower rates of MRSA than many equivalent hospitals in the UK, Ireland, Italy, France, Spain and Belgium.
"Nevertheless, the Health Division acknowledges that there is undoubtedly room for improvement and has embarked on a number of initiatives aimed at its reduction," it continued.
Additional infection control nurses have been appointed in St Luke's to further intensify efforts. Just last month, Malta also became a signatory to the World Health Organisation's Global Campaign for Patient Safety and as a result several initiatives aimed at improving hand hygiene among healthcare workers will be started early next year.
Malta's initiatives to encourage the better use of antibiotics have also been acknowledged to be among the best in Europe, according to the division.
"We are seeing the results of our efforts and total antibiotic consumption has dropped by 33 per cent since 2001. Recent initiatives to improve ward hygiene also seem to be yielding positive results judging from the feedback of patients and staff alike," the statement said.
It pointed out that the imminent migration to Mater Dei Hospital will also alleviate two immitigable factors - overcrowding and lack of isolation rooms, which have been shown to be major contributors towards MRSA rates.
In the UK, hospitals are on the alert for a new strain of MRSA that kills young healthy people within 24 hours. An article in yesterday's The Times of London said that the outbreak, which has only just been reported, was identified in September when a female healthcare worker developed a severe MRSA infection and pneumonia and died following emergency surgery.