Improvements must be made to hygiene levels in hospitals across Northern Ireland if the fight against killer superbugs is to succeed, it has been claimed.

The team tasked with examining hygiene levels made the recommendation as it published its findings from unannounced inspections which uncovered startling lapses in basic hygiene levels in some of the province’s acute hospitals.

Inspections by the Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) — Northern Ireland's health and social care regulator — were launched as part of a £9m package of measures aimed at stamping out hospital acquired infections.

In January, Health Minister Michael McGimpsey revealed the action plan, which included restrictions on hospital visiting, MRSA screening for high-risk patients, single rooms for new hospitals to improve hygiene and privacy and the introduction of a dress code for all health care staff.

The issue of hygiene in hospitals has become increasingly prominent in recent years with the number of hospital-acquired infections on the rise. Introduction of the inspections by the RQIA were the first unannounced inspections of their kind at hospitals.

However, the reports are expected to do little to raise confidence levels among the public as they show that basic guidelines were being ignored in wards across Northern Ireland until they were brought to the attention of the health trusts following the unannounced inspections.

Mr McGimpsey promised a regional hand hygiene campaign to encourage health care staff and visitors to wash their hands and the introduction of a dress code for all health care staff.

Yet, some six months on from the announcement of the multi-million pound investment in clean and safer care, the inspection teams found glaring omissions in the way best practice guidelines regarding hygiene were implemented in hospitals throughout the province.

The average score of wards in each hospital shows that Downe Hospital only achieved minimal compliance in all but two categories — personal protection equipment and handling and disposal of sharps, where they were rated as compliant and partially compliant respectively.

Both Altnagelvin and the Causeway achieved compliance in three areas, according to the average score of wards inspected by the audit team.

Alliance spokesman for health Kieran McCarthy said while he welcomed the work carried out by the RQIA he was angered at many of the findings of the inspections.

“There really is no excuse for much of this and there has to be someone in each of the Trusts who is held responsible for what can only be described as a failure to implement best practice guidelines and common sense when it comes to hygiene levels in hospitals,” he said.

“The Belfast Telegraph recently highlighted the amount of money spent on agency staff and I believe that if more money was made available to ensure we have permanent cleaning staff in safe jobs who are doing a constant job, then it would eradicate many of the problems being highlighted by the RQIA.”

Teams of eight people, including a consultant in communicable disease control, infection control nurses and estates officers, turned up without warning to hospitals in each health and social care trust area.

Using a multidisciplinary approach to hygiene and infection control, based on the Infection Control Nurses Association audit tool, the teams inspected a range of clinical areas.

They examined the general cleanliness of the fabric of the hospital environment, waste handling and observed hand hygiene practices.

RQIA interim chief executive Alice Casey said: “The RQIA's key priority as the independent regulator of health and social care in Northern Ireland is to ensure the protection of patients. We believe that significant improvements in hospital hygiene must be achieved and we will continue to undertake unannounced hygiene inspections until we are satisfied that the cleanliness of hospitals in Northern Ireland is of the highest order.

“At a time when hospitals are under considerable public scrutiny, we believe that these inspections will lead to increased public confidence in our health and social care services.

“In all hospitals visited, our inspection teams found elements of good practice as well as poor practice. Whilst many of the issues raised within the inspection reports require investment in the fabric of the buildings, others can be achieved through a change in culture within hospitals.”