NHS to track more infections

Health secretary Andrew Lansley has announced that patients are to be given more information around the number of healthcare associated infections at hospitals.

This will mean that hospitals will to report on infections, such as Meticillin Sensitive Staphylococcus Aureus (MSSA) and E. coli.

Mr Lansley said: "Patients deserve the highest standards of care and expect to be kept safe from harm in hospital. We are now publishing weekly MRSA and C.difficile statistics, enabling patients to make an informed decision about where to go for treatment, based on the issues which matter to them.

"We will extend our system of mandatory reporting in the New Year to include MSSA from January 2011, with others like E.coli to follow in line with expert advice.

"Armed with the right information, patients themselves will drive up standards in the NHS as they decide where they want to go based on the best available data. This is a vital thrust of our reforms to build a patient-centred NHS that achieves outcomes for patients that are among the best in the world."