Venice- Trading on Romance.

In a brief departure from news and newsy-led features, here is a short but sweet travel article, produced after a recent three day trip to Venice.

The article was sent to the Realbuzz.com web site, with a view to writing a little more regularly for them at some point in the future.

Travel writing has always been a huge passion, though I've barely had time of late. Getting away, even though only for a few days, gave me the chance to experiment a little further through the Realbuzz.com site. We shall see how it goes...

Venice- Trading on Romance.

Small yappy dogs with legs woefully too short to match the brisk pace of their owners move purposefully through the narrow maze of alleyways, clad in snug fitting Dolce and Gabbana jackets. Hang on a minute; The owners?…or the dogs?

Welcome to the city of Venice, where even the canines are decked out in this season’s latest.

In a place where image is everything, Venice has worked tirelessly over the years to cultivate a reputation for continental passion and simple romance.

The Italian state tourist board tells of a city whose “fragile beauty and romantic history succeeds in transporting the visitor back in time”. A city where “romance and water intertwine”.

These labyrinthine waterways continue to fulfil their historical role as the life giving veins and arteries of the city.

Alongside the ever-present iconic gondolas, motorboats chug by bearing the logos of Venetian laundry firms, making their deliveries and collections at the canal side service doors of the hotels and hostels.

Council workers pass in the opposite direction, taking away the city’s refuse by means of a crane attached to the deck of their small craft.

Venice itself is something of an oasis in global terms, in that the city is virtually traffic free. The many cars, buses, and trains that make the 4 km trip across the historic causeway from the Italian mainland to the Venetian centre remain at the western tip of the island, journeys continuing on foot, or by boat, leaving the city’s infrastructure to function around the maze of waterways.

It is this permanent presence of water that has served the city’s romantic reputation so faithfully over the centuries. Life moves noticeably slower if it floats by. The familiar inner-city sound track of blaring horns and wailing sirens is replaced by the gentle chug of an outboard engine, and the age old toll of bells echoing through the alley ways from any one of the city’s myriad churches.

Venice in 2007, however, is a city struggling beneath the weight of the pre-conceived notions held dear by its millions of visitors every year.

Despite the encroaching chill of winter on a crystal clear November morning, gondoliers fight over our custom like vultures over a scrap of meat. Competition for the tourist coin is cut throat.

My friend and I manage to find a couple to split the not inconsiderable 80 Euro cost of a 40 minute ride. As we move lazily through the canals, I expect to turn and watch as our gondolier spends half his time propelling our gondola, and the other half attempting to joust passing gondoliers into the cold, murky waters.

The city also suffers somewhat from its overt fashion consciousness. As dogs pass by in Dolce and Gabbana, immigrant workers lay their wares upon row after row of pavement stalls, no more than a collection of blankets, spread with Prada handbags and Yves Saint Lauren sunglasses. The goods are offered up to tourists at a fraction of the cost of the real thing.

In Venice, it is so easy to feel you have arrived at an exclusive party in your best Primark sweater. The curious Venetian propensity for hanging line upon line of identical underpants out to dry in a shameless display of routine taste is therefore most refreshing.

I am almost tempted to reveal my “Instant Lover- Just Add Beer” underpants, and declare myself "best dressed man in Venice".

Combine this with the vast collection of tourists clad in anoraks and baseball caps, and Venice succeeds in creating the air of a perpetual down market fashion show masquerading as upmarket glamour and designer savvy.

The many restaurants and cafes that line the streets cater again to tourist expectations. This is no bad thing however, as eating in Italy is a joy, with cheap but good quality red wine and the ubiquitous pasta and lasagne dishes, drizzled with olive oil and fresh garlic.

Sitting and watching the people go by, enjoying the sites as thousands of commuters pass aboard the regular boats on the canals is a simple but entertaining way to round off what is often a long, tiring day spent on foot.

Despite the lateness of the year, and the cool temperatures, Venice remains a teeming city. It is easy to see that in the height of summer, when the vast majority of tourists flock here in search of solitude and romance, the number of people crammed onto the small island would go some way to ruining exactly that.

Venice is the ideal case study of an all too common tourism conundrum: The thousands drawn by their pre-conceived expectations inevitably cause the very collapse of the experience they have travelled to find.

In short, if a thousand people join the search for a single contact lens, the lens is more likely to be crushed underfoot, than recovered untarnished.

Westmead

This story was written for the Wood & Vale, during my ongoing work experience, appearing on page .....

It was sourced from a Westminster Arts Council press release. It concerns an extremely innovative approach by the council towards social care, particularly in the field of dementia, which culminated in a diary event that I was able to cover in person.

Home Is Where The Art Is

Residents of the Westmead Elderly Resource Centre performed a musical extravaganza on Friday, displaying a fine ear for a tune.

The performance, part of the Westmead Music Project, was conducted by musicians Fraser Trainer and Pete Whyman.

Pete Whyman performing alongside Westmead residents

The show was one of a number being organised by Westminster Arts, in an ongoing project to build partnerships with Westminster Adult Services, offering a growing expertise in the link between the arts and social care.

Kevin Williamson, Head of Housing and Care Services, said: “We had three or four generations of people gathered together here. Through this project, we aim to challenge people’s perceptions of the elderly.

“We hope to develop something quite innovative, to find ways of giving the staff at the home a different way to offer care. We would like to leave a certain legacy behind, to provide staff with the tools to engage the residents on a different level.”

Pete Whyman

Many of the residents of Westmead suffer from various forms of dementia, a particular issue which the music project aimed to tackle.

Musician Fraser Trainer has worked with the residents and staff of Westmead, alongside his colleague Pete Whyman, for the past four weeks in preparation for the grand performance. He said:

“It was so nice to see so many smiling faces together in the room. It’s been a huge journey for us.

"The residents composed at least fifty per cent of the final piece. Through this process, we tried to work on the strengths of everyone involved, to come up with innovative ways of challenging and dealing with things that could be viewed as weaknesses.”

The final piece was inspired by the lives, personalities, experiences, and imaginations of both the residents and the care workers.

Anything Goes!

A CD of the final performance is being produced for everybody involved. A DVD documenting the journey, including the final performance, is also under production.

Resident Vera Chapra was hugely impressed by the performance. “It was really very, very nice” she exclaimed. “Absolutely marvellous!”

Did Somebody Say "Amateur?!"

Here's a piece I generated myself, after hearing on the grapevine of a local amateur dramatics charity. I was invited to go along and watch one of their sell out performances in central London, in order to cover the show for the Wood & Vale, and, just because I wanted to!

Plus, here was a great opportunity for a nice, visual story to brighten up the newspaper, and the blog, and my weekend!

The group, Centre Stage, are performing no less than seven shows, all of which sold out some weeks ago, generating thousands of pounds. No mean feat. And they're doing it purely for the love of it.

I was even aloud to bring a friend. Myself and Annabell had a real nice time. Going to church on a Saturday night hey?!? Who'd have thought it! Check out the videos. Due to considerations of space, the paper could not use the story. Still, a good time was had by all.

Treading the Boards

How often do we hear of Hollywood stars expressing a desire to return to the days of “treading the boards”? Of pining for the flutter of nerves before show time, and the euphoric feeling in the wake of a successful performance?

For the stars of Centre Stage, the St John’s Wood based amateur dramatic society, treading the boards is what it’s all about.

Centre Stage take centre stage!

Centre Stage, a registered charity, has been giving people from all walks of life the opportunity to express themselves on stage for over 40 years.

As Group Director Peter Mills explains: “I have been with Centre Stage for over 15 years. I could not imagine what I would be doing if I was not out there rehearsing two, three times a week. I get so much out of it.”

Past performances include West Side Story and Anything Goes. The group’s current show, “I LOVE Centre Stage”, has been playing to sold out audiences of hundreds for the past two weeks at St Mary’s Church, Old Marylebone Road.

The show is a musical celebration of love in all its forms. When love is good, when love is bad, and when it’s somewhere in between.

Saturday night’s show was opened by Murray Grant, lawyer by day, solo vocalist by night, with Love Changes Everything.

Says Mr Grant: “I’m usually quite calm before hand. It’s only when I walk out there on stage that the nerves start to flutter a little. But it’s great to be the first out.”

23 year old Rachael Holbrook was next up, showing off her strong, touching vocals. Ms Holbrook currently harbours a desire to turn professional, and is in the process of auditioning for a number of rolls.

Racheal Holbrook

The show continued, alternating between group performances, the 30 or so voices easily filling the ample space, and individual acts, displaying the vocal talents of many of the group’s members.

David Walker-Smith gave a series of fantastic performances, rousing the audience with the breadth of his vocal range. Having become engaged the previous week, Mr Walker-Smith displayed an easy familiarity with the theme of the show.

Richard Le Coq continued to entertain the crowd with a well choreographed act, as two beautiful girls fought over the pint sized singer with the barrel sized voice.

The night, however, was stolen by Siobhan McConnan and Paul Cozens, who had the audience in stitches with a classic performance of “I Can’t Do It”, a song reflecting on a fizzled out, passionless marriage.

The passion of Centre Stage, however, was there for all to see. Thankfully, the warning of modest Director Peter Mills- “the more you drink, the better we sound”, was unnecessary. The dramatics may have been amateur; but the ability and passion, were nothing but professional.

Perfect Harmony!

Centre Stage are always on the look out for new members, so, if you belt out show tunes in your bedroom, and have a natural flair for jazz hands, why not put your talents to good use, and tread the boards around St John's Wood? Whether you wish to be on stage, or help out behind the scenes, simply email your details to centrestagelondon@yahoo.co.uk

The Youth, and Nothing but the Youth.

Another piece which started out as a simple press release. The man behind the scenes, Vitto Farsi, is an incredibly cool guy, and is only 18 years old. Actually makes me feel old!

This was produced for the Wood & Vale, appearing on page 8 of the Nov 23rd '07 issue.

Students at Quinton Kynaston School took the initiative in tackling bullying on Wednesday, at Westminster Educational Department’s annual anti-bullying event.

The workshop, held to coincide with National Anti-Bullying Week, was lead by students of the school, which plays host to one of the largest and most active Student Voice faculties in the UK.

The student led seminar displayed how the voice of students can give a whole school approach to anti-bullying.

Vitto Farci, based at the school and at just 18, the UK’s youngest ever educational consultant, said:

“The whole focus was on cyber bullying. We asked: ‘Are adults in the best position to talk about how to use the internet, and mobile communications, to combat bullying?’

“To promote a complete anti-bullying ethos in schools, we need to come up with ways of empowering the students.”

Alongside the student message, the event included a series of high profile speeches, including a presentation from Quintin Kynaston head Jo Shuter.

Ms Shuter was recently awarded the National Headteacher of the Year in a Secondary School award at the Teaching Awards 2007.

There are over a hundred students involved with Student Voice at Quintin Kynaston, with eight Student Leaders sitting on the Student Leadership Team. These eight are the students who run Student Voice, and who spoke at the workshop.

The school also took the opportunity to preview their “Student Voice- The Key to Anti-Bullying” DVD, which is being made available to all Westminster Schools.

Student Voice had an active role in the DVD, helping with filming, deciding on content, conducting interviews, and overseeing editing.

Last year the school hosted the first ever Student Voice conference, with over 40 London schools in attendance. It was the first conference in the UK to be organised and lead entirely by students.

As Mr Farci explains: “Student Voice not only ensures students views and opinions are heard and valued; it also allows students to positively contribute back to the school, which really enhances the positive ‘can do’ ethos of the school.”

The Fruits of her Labour

Here's the result of an interview conducted with my local MP here in St Johs Wood, Karen Buck. Produced with the Wood & Vale in mind, it was, unfortunately, superseeded by a SECOND Karen Buck story, the lady in question choosing that very same week to intervene in a street fight, earning herself a front page appearance. Well done Ms Buck...

The Fruits of her Labour

After ten years representing the people of St John’s Wood and Maida Vale, Karen Buck MP has spoken of her dissatisfaction concerning the issues of housing, and of life chances for children, in her constituency.

Ms Buck, MP for Regent’s Park and Kensington North, was elected to her position in 1997, and, though proud of many achievements, remains dissatisfied with progress in certain key areas.

Speaking from her base in Maida Vale, Ms Buck, who has made the issue of housing a priority throughout her political career, said:

“You have to do your best to meet peoples needs because we can’t have families sleeping on the streets. Making an affordable, decent quality housing offer to people is one of the most important things we can do.”

It would appear that the Prime Minister, no less, is in full agreement. The Queens speech, delivered on Tuesday, focused on the issue of housing.

The government stated a promise to build almost a quarter of a million homes every year until 2016, which should come as music to the ears of Ms Buck, who says that Westminster council still have a lot of work to do:

“I’m not at all satisfied with the progress made by the council. I think we are all dealing with the consequences of a nationwide shortage of housing, which has meant that private housing has become a lot more expensive while the demand for social housing has continued to grow.

“The provision of social housing, however, has been falling for the last 25 years. Now, obviously, turning that around in one borough is very difficult.

“The single biggest driver behind housing need in this country is the growth of single person households. The second thing is obviously house prices; affordability. Lots of people who could once afford to buy now can’t .”

Ms Buck also points to the interlinking issue of life expectancy to further illustrate the economic concerns of families in her constituency today.

“What’s extraordinary, is the fact that we have a nine year gap in life expectancy between people living in Church Street, near Edgeware Road, and people living in Knightsbridge. What kind of society can tolerate that?

“It’s not just a question of having a bit more money or a bit less money. It’s the fact that you will actually live nine years longer if you’re better off than if you’re poor.”

Ms Buck also expressed her concern with the forthcoming constituency boundary changes, due to go into affect at the next general election.

“We go from having a moderately safe labour seat to having a fairly marginal seat. I’d be a fool not to be worried about the political challenge at the next election. The margin, on paper, is a small one.”

Karen Buck does, however, find the time to enjoy the fruits of her labour: “The transformation of parts of this community over the past ten years has been extraordinary.

“You look down the Harrow Road and you see brand new health centres, two brand new secondary schools, and a children’s centre. That practical manifestation is what it’s all about.”

The Patter of Tiny Paws

After the last couple of weeks of mental health anguish, MRSA, and MPs fighting for what's right, it's high time for animals, fluff, paws, toes, softness, cuddlyness and cuteness. The following was produced for the Wood & Vale Nov 16th. Enjoy....(AWWWWW.....)

Having reached the tender age of six weeks, London Zoo’s newest arrival, a tiny black tailed marmoset, is doing just fine…and has even started branching out on his own two paws.

Staff at the zoo were pleased to welcome the vary rare species of monkey to the world on September 30th- the first ever to be born at the zoo. There are hopes it is the first of many for mum and dad- five year old Victoria, and two year old Albert.

Native to South America, the species belongs to the New World monkey family, and is housed in the zoo’s brand new £2 million Clore Rainforest facility, where the family can’t help but feel at home, as they munch insects in the balmy 34 degree heat.

Keeper Maggie Lamb said: “In the last week, the baby has started to show a lot more independence, running around all alone. Victoria and Albert will continue breeding, hopefully until the age of 15 or 16, though they tend to slow down a little once they reach double figures.”

Zoo keepers operate a hands-off policy when it comes to raising the young, preferring to keep a watchful eye on things as mum and dad go about their duties.

As Ms Lamb explains: “As the parents go on to breed, our new arrival will have the chance to learn from the parents how to raise a child. This is often one of the problems with hand reared offspring. The young do not get the chance to learn first hand.”

So expect the patter of tiny paws to reverberate around the Clore Rainforest once again in the near future.

There is, however, one small problem at present. The new arrival is yet to be christened. Due to the hands-off raising policy, nobody can be sure whether they are naming a male cheeky monkey, or a female!

Hitchin' a ride!

Health Funding Cut is 'Threat to the Vulnerable'.

So, as promised, the big menatal health story. Now, I can only take the credit for around 80 per cent of this. The immigration angle was not my doing at all, and was added during the subbing process at some point. This was something of a surprise, but, as I am coming to learn, what ends up on paper is not always what you send the subs. So here it is, (with the subbing addition in red.) This appeared as the lead on page 14 of the Nov 2nd Ham & High. The images are my own.

Health Funding Cut is 'Threat to the Vulnerable'.

Westminster faces a £25.3 million cut from its social care funding if radical government reforms go ahead.

Local authorities across London have been forced to brace themselves against the threat of losing a drastic £420 million from their budget under the reforms.

The moves would slash funding for the physically and mentally disabled, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and mental health services.

Abbey Road mental health centre: facing an uncertain future
if planned government cuts go ahead.

The warning from London Councils, the group which represents all of London's 33 councils, comes at a time when social care funding in the capital is already overstretched.

More then 80 per cent of London councils have been forced to restrict their services to those with substantial or critical needs.

Westminster is currently able to provide care to people with moderate levels of need but if reforms go ahead the future is uncertain.

Health boss Cllr Edward Argar said: "If this new formula is introduced, we risk facing a severe shortage in our funding for social care.

"This would impact upon some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

"It does not take full account of people with complex needs, such as those with mental health or drug problems, many of whom are often attracted to the anonymity and bright lights of places like Westminster."

"At a time when the pressure upon adult social care is increasing for a variety of reasons, it is vital that services such as these get the resources they need to support people.

"We are determined to continue to provide the excellent services we do now. This really makes an impact on people's lives.

"To do that it is vital that the government ensures that we get the long term funding that is needed, rather than tinkering with spending."

An announcement on the proposals is expected in the coming months, when ministers will make final decisions over how funding is distributed until 2011.

Ministers are threatening to remove protection that prevents cuts to social services grants in several regions.

But critics have been quick to point out that the new formula unfairly discriminates against urban areas. And they say the cuts will be doubly damaging considering the extra pressure put on the capitals resources by an influx of migrants.

Finance boss Cllr Colin Barrow said: "There are many benefits to hard working migrants living and working in our city, but we are concerned about the inability of official statistics to keep up with the pace of change that means a rising number of councils are not receiving the government funding they need.

"Official statistics do not take account of people who say they are coming to the UK for less than 12 months and places like Westminster attract huge numbers of these 'short term' migrants.

"At present the government prefers to ignore these people, as they are too difficult for them to measure, rather than fund services to support them."

During a survey of 70 psychiatrists by the mental health charity SANE, two thirds said that "more funding, more staff and beds, and better facilities for patients are all crucial for the improvement of mental health care".

A pair of shorts...

Just to keep things moving, here's a couple of shorts from the Wood & Vale, November 2nd. The first originated from a Conservative Party press release. I could not resist poking a little fun! The second is from a Westminster Council press release. To follow, there's a longer, more involved piece on mental health. This will be uploaded shortly.

Tories Get Cosy in run up to General Election.

There was an enthusiastic round of back slapping this week among local Conservative Party candidates, with Joanne Cash and Shaun Bailey pledging to develop closer ties between their neighbouring constituencies.

Mr Bailey, the candidate for the newly established Hammersmith constituency, praised the work of Ms Cash, the candidate for Westminster North.

Mr Bailey said: "Already, in a very short space of time, Joanne has worked with some of the most disadvantaged people in the constituency. This has demonstrated her belief in social justice, and her desire to change people's lives for the better."

The mutual admiration continued with Ms Cash returning the compliment: "Shaun is a fantastic ambassador for the modern Conservative Party," she said.


Citizens Help Lay Down Law

More than 700 Westminster residents are taking to the streets in a bid to tackle crime, anti-social behaviour and environmental concerns.

The scheme, known as the CivicWatch Citizens, includes individuals and community groups. It began in South Westminster in 2005 and spread throughout the borough this year.

A new phase, Active Citizenship, is being piloted in Abbey Road, Regent's Park, and Bayswater this autumn. This gives the citizens the chance to take part in environmental street audits with the police and council members to highlight problem issues and areas.

A council spokeswoman said: "The scheme has been a huge success. It's all about tackling problems from the grass roots upwards.

"Our members are the people who are living in the area. They know what's going on. This provides us with an effective method to tackle their concerns."

If you would like to become a CivicWatch Citizen, call 020 7641 1007 or email CivicWatchCitizen@westminster.gov.uk.

Mr Wallens, you star...

And, on a slightly less serious note, here is the other piece featured in last weeks paper.

This came about while I journeyed to Brunel one morning, when I happened to stumble across a unique protest. I thought it might be worth a story, and it paid off!

Here, taken from page 22 (the Diary section, written by the some may say mythical 'Heathman') of the Ham & High.

The Times They are a-Changing

Don't tell the editor, but maybe we could all do with taking a leaf out of Luke Wallens' book?

The 23 year old American recently staged an impromptu demonstration at Finchley Road encouraging commuters to make a change and take the day off.

He said: "One can get quite complacent about their routine. I see many people on the street and on my train who have dead pan faces and aimless eyes, day in, day out. I thought I could present an alternative that's always there but seldom used."

Mr Wallens' received more than a few smirks from commuters, no doubt debating whether or not to take his sage advice.

Heathman of course continued with his journey to the Ham & High offices.

Brooks' response

Just a very brief entry...

As if Mr Newmark (see two articles below, entitled 'A Healthy Interest') doesn't have enough on his plate with the community hosptal campaign, here is his response to the profile piece. How nice to see our MPs taking the time to let us know they care!


RE: article reply‏
From: NEWMARK, Brooks (NEWMARKB@parliament.uk)
You may not know this sender. Mark as safe Mark as unsafe
Sent: 29 October 2007 16:57:18
To: Jamie Stewart (jamiestewart7@hotmail.com)


Very nice piece and very complimentary!

Many thanks.

All the best

Brooks

Hospital commended despite superbug risk

Still on the subject of hospitals, as mentioned below, here is the full article on St Mary's, our local hospital here in north London, produced for the Wood & Vale. St Mary's is based down in Paddington.

There's an interesting little tale as to how the story came about. It originated from a press release on the part of St Mary's NHS trust concerning their positive results in the annual health check. A little digging, however, led to a far more interesting story. It raised certain issues regarding which angle to take. One that attacked the hospital for it's MRSA failure, or one which commended it for the health check results.

So, I decided, the contrast between these two angles became the story. At the time of researching and writing, I was fully under the impression that I had a second front page story on my hands. As it was, however, the subs had other ideas. And therein lies a valuable lesson between what I personally consider the big story, and what the editors, who have been doing the job for years and know the paper and their audience, consider the big story. The two opinions are by no means the same.

All part of the learning curve I guess. So, by way of illustrating this point, here is the original story as submitted, along with pics, and below this, is the abridged version, which appeared not on page 1, but on page 13 of the Wood & Vale, Oct 26th, 2007.

HOSPITAL COMMENDED DESPITE SUPERBUG RISK

St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington, has achieved good results in the health care commissions annual health check; despite the failure of the hospital to hit targets designed to reduce super bug infection rates.

The report, released last Thursday, rated St Mary’s NHS Trust, which has since merged to form the Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, “Good” for financial management, an improvement on the Trust’s rating of “Fair” last year. The trust also received a “Good” rating, for the second year running, for the quality of its services.

“Quality of Services” covers a range of areas including some related to MRSA infection, including cleanliness, and safety of patients.

MRSA rates at St Mary’s were 45 for 2006/07, down from 67 in 2005/06, though this figure is still above that set by the hospitals local delivery plan.

Figures obtained from the Healthcare Commission reveal that, back in June the St Mary’s NHS Trust was asked to make a declaration, stating whether it complied with three separate core standards relating to the control of super bug infections such as MRSA.

The first of the core standards is defined as: “Ensuring that the risk of infection to patients is reduced, with emphasis on high standards of hygiene and cleanliness.”

The Trust declared that they had “not met” the required standard.

A spokesperson for Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust said: “The infection rates were above projected figures set in the local delivery plans.

“For this reason the Trust declared ‘non-compliance’ on the healthcare standard to reduce MRSA, which forms part of the overall annual health check score.”

After the release of last years figures, Roy Oliver, Chairman of the Patient and Public involvement Forum, St Mary’s Committee, said: “MRSA has been a high concern of patients for the last two years.

“The forum is concerned that non-compliance with national standards on bed spacing, and high occupancy rates, makes it difficult to control hospital acquired infection.”

However, Mr Oliver stated he was: “Pleased that the trust is now screening patients for MRSA as part of their surgical preadmission clinic.” The forum also declared they were “pleased with the progress the hospital has made since the 2005/06 results”.

The Trust has established a “saving lives” task force to tackle issues relating to MRSA infection.

Mark de Costres, 61, contracted MRSA in 2000 at St Mary's, where he was being treated after breaking his leg. He said: “It was very scary. Very frightening. I was kept in isolation for two weeks after being diagnosed. I didn't now what was going to happen. Only my daughter was allowed in to see me.”

Anna Walker, Chief Executive of the Healthcare Commission, warned: “There is no silver bullet for healthcare associated infections. It requires action across [a range of] areas, and relentless attention to good practice for every patient, every time.

“We will not hesitate to use our powers under the Hygiene Code or through investigations to require trusts to make immediate improvements in their infection control practices if necessary.”

The Healthcare Commission has imposed a nationwide commitment to halve MRSA infection rates by March next year.

And the story as it appeared in the Wood & Vale...

Healthy St Mary's

St Mary’s Hospital has achieved good results in the Health Care Commissions annual health check, despite failure to hit targets designed to reduce superbug infection rates.

The report, released last Thursday, rated St Mary’s NHS Trust “Good” for financial management, an improvement on the Trust’s rating of “Fair” last year. It also received a “Good” rating, for the second year running, for the quality of its services.

MRSA rates at St Mary’s were 45 for 2006/07, down from 67 in 2005/06, but this figure is still above that set by the hospitals local delivery plan.