Inroads in battle against superbug

Reports across Europe may be giving the impression that the battle against superbugs is being lost, but bacteria like MRSA are slowly fading, according to Infection Control Unit head Michael Borg.

“Not only are we not losing the war, but if you look at France and the UK, which had very similar MRSA levels to those we have at the moment, they have managed in a short period of four years to half their MRSA,” Dr Borg said.

This comes only a month after the BBC reported European health experts cautioning that Europe was losing the battle against these superbugs, which have become resistant to very strong antibiotics.

However, Dr Borg was quick to clarify that, to win the “war” against these bugs, one had to look at the prevention of the infection and not the cure.

“The trick is not to try and rope in the horse that has escaped the stables, but to make sure the stables are closed so that they don’t escape in the first place,” he said.

It was true that MRSA was becoming more resistant, but avoidance of episodes of infection would truly eliminate the problem, he continued.

In fact, the UK and France managed to bring down the incidence of MRSA infection by advocating good hand hygiene and proper antibiotic use, he said.

In Malta, the figures for superbug infection seem promising, as Health Minister Joe Cassar announced that the Intensive Care Unit of Mater Dei Hospital has not had a blood-borne infection by MRSA since December 1, 2009.

“This is especially significant in critical patients,” Dr Cassar told a press conference yesterday in the run-up to World Hand Hygiene Day on Thursday.

Some wards, he said, registered better compliance in hand hygiene than others.

Orthopaedic Ward 3, for example, was found to have 78 per cent of staff members comply with hand hygiene techniques when checked by Infection Control.

Dr Cassar emphasised the importance of not only medics but even patients and relatives washing their hands while in hospital.

The fact that alcohol hand rubs were available at every hospital bedside meant there were no excuses not to do this, he said.