All patients admitted to hospital in Bradford are now being screened for the superbug MRSA.

Screening had previously applied to elective patients being admitted for surgery or other procedures, but this has now been extended to all admissions, including emergencies.

The move is in line with national guidance and is part of the commitment to further reduce the risk of MRSA infection.

Dr Philip Stanley, director of infection prevention and control at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “Patients who are going to be admitted through A&E will notice that on the admission wards they will get a nasal swab. The test is processed by the next working day and if MRSA is found we will adjust the patient’s treatment.”

MRSA can live harmlessly on the skin without causing infection. It only becomes dangerous when it enters the body through a break in the skin. Screening so far has detected MRSA in 2.5 per cent of patients being admitted for surgery at BRI.

In April 2008, the foundation trust started a hospital hygiene turnaround programme amid concern over high rates of MRSA. The programme saw a vast reduction in the number of cases, and rates of MRSA infection at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust continue to be low.

There have been three cases so far in 2010/11 where patients have developed an MRSA infection in their bloodstream more than 48 hours after being admitted to hospital. This is against a target of five for the year.

Dr Stanley said the reduction in the number of cases could not be pinned on one single thing, but rather a combination of factors, including screening and making sure all areas of infection prevention and control were adhered to.

“It is a combination of more cleaning and making sure that all of the things we knew about actually happened,” he said.

He also highlighted the trust’s Safe Campaign, a year-long campaign to improve patients’ safety.

The foundation trust is also performing well against other infection targets. There have been 60 cases of C difficile at its hospitals this year, which is more than 50 per cent better than its target of 124 in the year to date. The full year target is 156.