Huge State bill fear as MRSA victims sue

UP to 50 people affected by the killer bug, MRSA, are to sue the State on grounds they or their families were infected due to lax hygiene controls in hospitals.

If successful, the landmark case could spark a raft of claims and expose the Government to a potentially massive legal bill.

A well-known firm of Dublin solicitors, with wide experience in the area of medical litigation, informed the newly-formed MRSA And Families action group yesterday that they will take either individual cases or a group action.

MRSA (methicillin-resistant staphylococus aureus) is a bacterium commonly found on the skin. But it is also present in dirt, dust, mops and cloths in hospitals. MRSA can kill a patient if enters into the bloodstream, especially if they are weakened by other illnesses.

A recent survey by British researchers Patient View revealed Ireland has the highest rate of MRSA infection in Europe, with an infection rate of 119.3 per million inhabitants over double that of second-placed Portugal.

Fianna Fáil deputy John Mc Guinness, who strongly backs the MRSA And Families campaign, yesterday confirmed that the organisation was supporting the legal route.

"We have twice asked to meet the Minister for Health and we've had no response either time. And, our parliamentary questions have received no real answers as to the numbers infected," he said.

"The former health board areas won't release the figures. We think that the department are paralysed with fear about the possible consequences of this bug."

Less than a fortnight ago, the Irish Society of Clinical Microbiologists (ISCM) sent a letter to the Tánaiste, the National Hospitals Office and the State Claims Agency criticising their "lack of substantial progress" on tackling hospital-acquired infections.

The ISCM forwarded a position paper to the Health Department last year, which outlined urgent steps that need to be taken to tackle hospital-acquired bugs which they say were at

"unacceptable and unjustifiable" levels.

They warned the Government's failure to provide ring-fenced funding and priority status to infection control could mean "major problems" if the country is hit with an infectious disease crisis like SARS, an influenza pandemic or a bio-terrorism threat.

The paper highlighted "major deficiencies" in the hospital services and called for the appointment of additional specialist consultant and nursing staff, isolation facilities when refurbishing and building new hospitals and an increase in beds to calm overcrowding.

ISCM president and Professor of Bacteriology at NUI Galway, Professor Martin Cormican, said that no "substantial progress" has been made since then.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health was last night unavailable for comment.