The Health Protection Agency and the Healthcare Commission have published Management, prevention and surveillence of Clostridium difficile: interim findings from a national survey of NHS acute trusts in England. The survey looked at:
- the reported incidence and pattern of Clostridium difficile infection
- approaches that already exist to prevent and manage outbreaks of the infection in hospitals
- the challenges preventing trusts from being able to control outbreaks
- the views of professionals on what should be done to reduce the incidence of the infection
The findings revealed that over a third of trusts surveyed did not routinely follow government guidelines on the management of Clostridium difficile infection in their hospitals.