University Hospital Limerick warned on infection prevention

University Hospital Limerick, the subject of an internal and external probe over concerns that patients died after being infected by multidrug-resistant superbugs, has been warned by the health watchdog to immediately boost staffing numbers in its infection prevention and control team, writes Catherine Shanahan.

Hiqa wrote to Colette Cowan, CEO of the UL Hospitals Group, following an inspection in September, saying it had identified issues “that may present a serious risk” to patients, visitors, and staff, and that immediate measures were needed to mitigate them.

This was “in the context of a hospital which is presented with known challenges” associated with the almost untreatable suberbug, carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE).