University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust has reported no cases of C.difficile infection on its wards for the past 100 days.
The good news comes following the launch a partnership with infection control company, Tristel, which has been providing close support to the trust's infection prevention and control team.
The team has been using Tristel products in their strategy to combat C.diff infections. For surface disinfection, nurses use Tristel Jet, a trigger gel spray; and Fuse, a disinfectant for larger surface areas. Both are based on Tristel’s proprietary Chlorine dioxide chemistry and are rapidly effective against bacteria, fungi, viruses, mycobacteria and, most crucially, bacterial spores.
Tristel has also played a central role in staff training and in developing specific processes for using its products.
As a result of the initiatives, every ward across the trust has achieved 100 days with no reported cases of the infection. Ninety-five per cent have also reached 200 days and 14 wards have seen no cases for a year.
The team’s novel approach to infection control included the use of innovative campaigns to publicise and educate those at the frontline.
The collaboration with Tristel was an important element in this success. Kate Prev, matron for infection prevention and control at the trust, said: “What’s crucial is that nurses like using Tristel products, which without doubt has had a huge impact on our infection figures. Fuse, which is supplied as a burstable sachet that is simply diluted to a single concentration in containers that are provided, proved particularly popular."