Oxoid Infection Control Team of the Year Awards

This is the fifth year of the Oxoid Infection Control Team of the Year Awards and the task of deciding the winner has not become any easier. “The standard of entries was extremely high, with many examples of excellent practices and falling rates of infection,” said Fiona Macrae, Oxoid awards manager and chairman of the judging panel. “The results given by many entrants prove that their work is contributing to better patient and public outcomes, which is encouraging news for us all. The winning teams should be justly proud of their achievements.”

The winner team from Worcester Acute NHS Trust (pictured) received the first prize of £5000. The judges were impressed that, faced with many challenges, the team was able to reduce rates of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Clostridium difficile infections, reduce antibiotic usage and introduce a number of new and interesting methods to reinforce the message of infection prevention and control around the trust.

Initiatives that proved to be key to the success of the team included the introduction of an administrative post with responsibility for reviewing all admissions to certain target wards for MRSA risk factors and for coordinating any necessary screening. This resulted in screening protocol compliance of over 90% and a dramatic reduction in MRSA bloodstream infections.

A programme of weekly self-audit was introduced in ward areas, with additional inspections by infection control nurses. In addition, a rolling programme of steam cleaning was introduced, along with a rapid response team, which brought about a significant reduction in the rates of C. difficile infection.

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