NI ambulance service 'unacceptable levels' of cleanliness
The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority (RQIA) has recommended to place the Northern Ireland Ambulance Service Trust on 'special measures'.
Last updated 21st Mar 2018
The RQIA found that a number of stations and vehicles had unacceptable standards of infection prevention, control, hygiene and cleanliness.
It follows unannounced inspections to 21 ambulance stations across Northern Ireland.
In some instances, they found high levels of cleanliness - but also found unclean equipment and blood in some ambulance vehicles.
They recommended the secondment into Northern Ireland Ambulance Service (NIAS) of a senior practitioner with experience in infection prevention and control, governance and assurance.
They found limited progress had been made to address issues previously identified at Bangor, Broadway and Craigavon ambulance stations and vehicles, on 26 February 2018 and therefore recommended that the Department of Health implement a special measure to support NIAS.
The Regulation and Quality Improvement Authority is the independent body responsible for monitoring and inspecting the availability and quality of health and social care services in Northern Ireland, and encouraging improvements in the quality of those services.
A spokesperson for the NIAS said "The NIAS welcomes the offer of additional support which will complement the range of measures we have already taken to address the immediate issues identified in the RQIA inspections.
"The person appointed will in particular support NIAS in improving the governance and accountability systems in relation to hygiene, cleanliness and infection prevention and control. We are working closely with the Department and RQIA to have the necessary support in place as soon as possible.
"NIAS take this matter very seriously and are committed to take all necessary steps to ensure our stations and vehicles meet the high standards required to protect the patients who use our services."
However, the report did find a good standard of hygiene and cleanliness was evident in a number of stations and vehicles.
Dr Lourda Geoghegan, medical director with the RQIA, said: "We found a very mixed picture when we visited the ambulance stations and the ambulances.
"We did find some examples of very high standards of hygiene cleanliness, prevention and control.
"We found exemplary cleanliness both in ambulance stations and in ambulance vehicles across three broad areas.
"However we did also find across some areas that the standard of hygiene and cleanliness - were not just as high as we would want them to be - and that relates to the vehicles which are clinical treatment environmental areas and also in the ambulance stations themselves.
She said it was vital these areas were kept as clean as possible to protect patients from risk.
"The back of an ambulance is a clinical treatment environment - the same environment as if you're attending your GP or an emergency department. People are receiving care and treatment and in that context we expect them all to be of the highest standard of cleanliness and infection prevention - and that is with a huge focus to maintain patient safety and insure any who is in the environment is not exposed to risk."