Coroner instructs hospitals to report MRSA deaths

A CORNER has told doctors to report cases where MRSA was a patient’s cause of death.

Dublin City Coroner, Dr Brian Farrell, said his office has decided that cases must be reported to them where a patient dies from MRSA as a result of environmental factors in a hospital, due to cross-infection, or if the death was unexpected or unexplained. He told the Irish Medical Times that many such cases were not being reported to him.

“At present, we are not concerned if a patient dies with MRSA,” said Dr Farrell, “But if a patient dies from MRSA ... then it must be examined further.”