AN INCREASE in patients contracting infections while staying in Hampshire hospitals in December has been reported, with an investigation launched in relation to antibiotic prescribing and an increase in the use of acid-reducing medication.

Figures published by Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (HHFT) show that four patients caught clostridium difficile – also known as C. difficile – while at Basingstoke hospital in December and five people caught e coli at a HHFT hospital in the same month.

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A report to the hospital trust’s board of directors, published in January, said: “Cases are reviewed through the root cause analysis process and no connections in time and place have been identified, this increase is in line with regional and national trends and is being investigated nationally in relation to antimicrobial stewardship and an increased used and availability of proton pump inhibitors.”

Proton pump inhibitors (PPI) are medicines that work by reducing the amount of stomach acid made by glands in the lining of the stomach. Examples include omeprazole, lansoprazole and esomeprazole.

Antimicrobials are medicines including antibiotics used to prevent and treat infectious diseases.

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Antimicrobial stewardship is the effort to educate and persuade prescribers of antimicrobials to follow evidenced-based prescribing to stem antimicrobial overuse.

The trust’s infection figures also show that up to 57 people caught Covid in one of the trust’s three hospitals – Basingstoke, Andover and Winchester – last month.

The trust reported that it saw an increase in Covid cases in December, with 204 patients with Covid at its hospitals, which it said “reflects the national and local picture”.

A spokesperson for HHFT said: “We have seen a small rise in incidence of C difficile and e coli cases during the financial year to date, something which has also been noted in other neighbouring trusts across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, however, there is no evidence of sustained transmission between patients at Hampshire Hospitals.

“We do see fluctuations in the number of Covid cases in our hospitals, with case increases often driven by the emergence of a new variant or the time of year where the virus is more easily spread. Whilst we have seen a small increase in patients who have acquired Covid in hospital in recent weeks, this is as a direct result of an increase in Covid patients in our care, which is very much in line with the current picture across the region.

“We continue to ensure appropriate infection prevention processes are in place across our hospitals, including mask wearing in certain areas, in order to minimise any opportunity for transmission of all viruses.”