Horrific Superbug Kills 345 + Chief's Payoff

The health secretary, Alan Johnson, described the outbreak as "awful" and "a scandal", but denied that the problem was widespread in the NHS.

 
But Dr Enright said: "I think you'll find it's a very common infection in many hospitals. There are large outbreaks ongoing now.

 
"It's continuing and there's nothing convincing me that there's anything being done to tackle the problem."

 
He said that while there were targets to reduce rates of the most notorious hospital superbug, MRSA, there were none that specifically tackled C difficile.

The dangerous extent of killer bug C.diff emerged yesterday as it was revealed that a patient is struck down by it every 10 minutes.

Official figures show that in the first three months of 2007 more than 15,500 patients caught stomach bug Clostridium difficile.

According to the Health Protection Agency, that was a rise of almost a quarter on the previous three months.

Geoff Martin, of campaign group Health Emergency, said: "I have heard from Maidstone NHS staff this morning that chief exec Rose Gibb is rumoured to have received a massive pay-off from the trust.

 
"If it's true, we have a right to know how much taxpayers' money is involved and it would fuel the scandal even more if it turns out that senior managers have walked away from this carnage with their pockets stuffed with NHS cash."

The number of deaths was far higher than declared by the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust to the media and the Commission.

 
Inadequate staffing levels, dirty wards and too much focus on debts and Government targets all contributed to two serious outbreaks of C diff in the autumn of 2005 and early 2006, the study revealed.

The Healthcare Commission found “significant failings” at all levels at Maidstone, Pembury and Kent and Sussex Hospitals.

Filthy wards contributed to the deaths of 331 patients in the worst outbreak of a killer superbug ever recorded in the NHS, a damning report revealed yesterday.

 
Crowded wards, a shortage of nurses and "Third World" hygiene standards led to 1,176 people contracting Clostridium Difficile (C.diff) over two and a half years at three hospitals.

Ms Gibb left the trust by mutual arrangement after four years in the post. Annual accounts showed she earned around £150,000 in salary, £5,000 benefits and £12,500 in pension in 2006/07.

 
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and Kent Police are currently investigating whether to take action against the trust and Ms Gibb as an individual. A spokeswoman for the HSE said action against individuals can only be taken if there are grounds to act against a corporation firstly under the Health and Safety at Work Act.

The commission found that on several occasions nurses had told patients to "go in their beds" rather than helping patients with diarrhoea to get to a commode or bathroom. Some patients were left for hours in wet or soiled sheets.

The Healthcare Commission said a "litany" of errors in infection control had caused the "avoidable tragedy".

The commission's report said nurses at the trust were too rushed to wash hands and left patients to lie in their own excrement.

A knock on the door at 11 o'clock on Wednesday night finally brought to an end former pop singer Cheryl Baker's year-long battle to learn the truth about her mother-in-law's death.

Standing on the doorstep was a courier with a letter from her NHS Trust acknowledging that conditions at Maidstone Hospital in Kent, where Doreen Ford had undergone chemotherapy, had almost certainly been responsible for her death.

Since the 77-year-old succumbed to the Clostridium difficile infection in October last year, Cheryl has fought a very public battle to highlight the conditions her mother-in-law was nursed in.

Mr Johnson stepped in amid rumours that Rose Gibb received a large payout.

Health Minister Ann Keen said: "I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the patients and families who have been affected by these outbreaks. This type of failure must not be repeated.

"Trusts must deliver clean, safe treatment to every patient, every time and where senior management and trust boards fail to act, they must be held accountable.

A spokesman for Kent Police said: "Until such stage we have digested the contents of the report, we cannot say we are going to fully investigate this.

"We have got to review it first. The purpose of the review is to see if any criminal acts have taken place."