By Marjory Inglis, health reporter

TAYSIDE HOSPITALS’ chief Gerry Marr welcomed a reduction in MRSA bacteraemia rates published yesterday.

A national surveillance body reported NHS Tayside had halved its MRSA bacteraemia rates in the 12 months to the end of March.

A significant number of the population carry MRSA on their skin and in their nose and show no symptoms. Problems arise when the bug enters the bloodstream (MRSA bacteraemia) and causes infection, so it is the rate of bacteraemia that health chiefs and microbiologists are most concerned about.

Yesterday Health Protection Scotland published the Scottish Surveillance of Healthcare Associated Infection Programme quarterly report on MRSA bacteraemias in Scotland. The numbers of patients with MRSA bacteraemias in Tayside are quite small and the figures become miniscule when divided among the number of acute hospital beds occupied over a three-month period, which is the form the national report uses to present comparison figures.

The report recorded the rate per 1000 occupied acute hospital beds in Tayside was 0.44 for the quarter from April to June last year. The rate halved to 0.21 per 1000 in the first three months of this year.

Last week the region’s top microbiologist told health chiefs that “the tide is starting to turn” in the fight against MRSA and other infections afflicting patients. Dr Gabby Phillips said the region had the worst rate in Scotland last year for MRSA bacteraemia.

Dr Phillips pre-empted yesterday’s announcement when she told NHS Tayside’s acute services committee last week there were now signs of “significant improvement,” with the number of cases of MRSA for the first quarter well down on the comparable period last year.

Speaking about the continuing efforts to tackle the causes of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs), she said, “The campaign is starting to make a difference.”

Commenting on yesterday’s report Mr Marr said, “Dr Phillips reported to us at our meeting last week we were turning the tide, and the published information today certainly underpins that. That is encouraging but it won’t deflect us from continuing our efforts to tackle infection.

“We set a challenging target of reducing MRSA bacteraemia by 50% and it is really encouraging to achieve that.”

On the same day it emerged that NHS Tayside has spent £72,000 providing alcohol-based handrubs at every frontline hospital bedside as part of the war against antibiotic resistant superbugs.

Marlyn Glen, the Dundee-based MSP, has been informed by the Scottish Executive that, in common with other health boards across Scotland, NHS Tayside has put handrubs in place as part of the clean hospitals campaign against infections such as MRSA.

In a reply to a Parliamentary Question tabled by Ms Glen, Health Minister Andy Kerr said that NHS Tayside had been given £72,000 for 2005-06 compared with £12,000 in the previous year.

“Under the new clean hospitals campaign announced in March 2005, funding of £1.05 million was allocated to NHS Boards for the provision of alcohol-based handrubs at every frontline bed.

“Boards have confirmed that these measures are in place,” he told Ms Glen.

Ms Glen said, “Providing disinfectant handrubs at patients’ bedsides can have a real impact that benefits both staff and patients in the campaign against infections like MRSA.

“By taking steps that help to reduce the rate of hospital infection, this new clean hospitals campaign will pay for itself many times over.”

Ms Glen’s Parliamentary Question followed correspondence that she had entered into with NHS Tayside on their programme for tackling MRSA in hospital wards.