Hospitals have been told to recruit up to five extra specialist staff as part of a government strategy to improve infection control.

The government wants up to£45million to be invested on the scheme, out of a£270million fund identified in the comprehensive spending review for reducing healthcare-acquired infections.

But trusts are under no obligation to spend the money on hiring extra staff.

Health Secretary Alan Johnson told journalists: “We’re not saying to every hospital you have to recruit, we’re saying it’s up to you to use the money in a way you think is best suited to tackling infection control in your area.”

The strategy document, called Clean, safe care: reducing infections and saving lives, recommends employing two infection control nurses, two isolation nurses and an antimicrobial pharmacist.

Trusts can recuit new staff or train existing nurses in infection control skills.

Mr Johnson also advocated tough measures for staff who refuse to wash their hands, after a Healthcare Commission follow-up report last November into the C.Diff outbreak at Stoke Mandeville found a disproportionate amount of doctors were not complying with hand hygiene rules.

He said: “It’s about washing hands, it’s a real issue. It’s about empowering patients to say I didn’t see you wash your hands.

“InManchesterthey’ve made it a disciplinary offence not to {wash their hands} and it has had a dramatic effect.’

The DH is, with trade unions, developing human resources procedures that will spread the infection control message.

Mr Johnson said: “We’re not going to direct it from the centre but it’s very important.”

The annual£270million investment in infection control is reflected in the 5.5 per cent increase in PCT allocations and a 2.3 per cent uplift to the national tariff.

In addition to the£45million for specialist staff announce this week, it also includes£130million for the introduction of MRSA screening and£140million by 2010-11 to reduce rates of C.Diff.

Chief nursing officer Christine Beasley said it was unlikely that the new staff would simply replace nursing posts scrapped last year by trusts struggling to balance finances.

She said: “Undoubtedly last year was a tricky year for some of specialist nurses. Not many of the lost posts were in infection control because it’s a big issue for trusts.”

The DH will also, as part of the strategy, expect all aspirant foundation trusts to consistently hit local targets on both MRSA and C.difficile.

Before the public consultation stage, strategic health authorities will need confirmation that the trust is achieving its agreed rate of improvement on infections.

Where there are concerns, the SHA must satisfy itself that robust action plans are in place in demonstrate actual improvement by the time the trust makes a final application to the DH.

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