Written question asked by David Simpson (Democratic Unionist Party) on Friday, 6 October 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 9 October 2006. It was answered by Andy Burnham (Labour) on Monday, 16 October 2006 on behalf of the Department of Health.

MRSA

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have been treated for MRSA infection in (a) England and (b) each region in each of the last five years.

Answer: The information requested is not collected centrally. The most reliable data on methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in England are for MRSA bloodstream infections from April 2001 through the mandatory surveillance scheme. Regional data for each six month period from April 2001 to March 2006 was published on 24 July 2006, and this is available on the Health Protection Agency’s website at:"http://www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/hai/mandatory_ report_2006.htm"

Secondary information