20.01.17
NHS Supply Chain creates new infection control frameworks
NHS Supply Chain has combined seven of its product frameworks to create two new frameworks for skin infection in the hope that it will make it easier for NHS trusts to fight infection.
The two new agreements, ‘skin cleansing, disinfection & care’ and ‘skin disinfection & antimicrobial cleansing’, were designed in close co-operation with NHS Supply Chain’s stakeholders.
The consultation was conducted alongside an in-depth category management exercise to ensure that trusts are confident in the suitability of products and in how they have been grouped.
“Combining the seven previous frameworks into just two will make it easier for NHS trusts to order the products they need in the fight against infection,” said Nick Hutton, head of infection control and domestic management at NHS Supply Chain.
“Something as simple as hand washing is vital as a first line of defence against hospital infections such as E. coli.”
The ‘skin cleansing, disinfection & care’ framework focuses on general cleaning solutions which can be used in surgical, ward and community settings, such as hand hygiene products.
Meanwhile, the ‘skin disinfection & antimicrobial cleansing’ framework focuses on licensed medicines for cleaning and disinfecting clinicians’ and patients’ skin in surgical situations.
The new infection control frameworks have been designed to support the government’s plans to halve the number of gram-negative infections in the NHS by 2020, as announced by the health secretary Jeremy Hunt at an infection control summit last November
E. coli infections – which represent 65% of gram-negative infections – killed over 5,500 NHS patients last year and are predicted to cost the NHS £2.3bn by 2018.
Measures also announced by Hunt at the summit included more money for hospitals that make the most progress in reducing infection rates with a £45m quality premium fund, independent CQC inspections focusing on infection prevention and displaying E. coli rates on wards to make them more visible to patients and visitors.
Have you got a story to tell? Would you like to become a NHE columnist? If so, click here.