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Written question asked by Lord Lansley (Conservative) on Wednesday, 15 October 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 17 October 2008. It was answered by Ann Keen (Labour) on Wednesday, 26 November 2008 on behalf of the Department of Health.


Hospitals: Cleaning Services

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance his Department has issued to the NHS on the frequency with which different parts of hospitals should be cleaned in the last five years.
Answer

Locally determined cleaning frequencies are key to trusts meeting the requirements of the Code of Practice for the Prevention and Control of Healthcare Associated Infections (a copy of which has been placed in the Library,), identifying the resources needed to keep hospitals clean and demonstrating to the Healthcare Commission that those resources are sufficient.The first set of recommended minimum cleaning frequencies was set out in Revised Guidance on Contracting for Cleaning, published by the then NHS Estates Agency in December 2004. A copy has been placed in the Library. This best practice document was designed to assist the National Health Service in ensuring that contracts for cleaning were driven by quality rather than price.The existing minimum recommended cleaning frequencies are set out in the national specifications for cleanliness in the NHS: a framework for setting and measuring performance outcomes (a copy of which has been placed in the Library,). This document was published in updated form by the National Patient Safety Agency in April 2007. Minimum recommended cleaning frequencies have been provided in specimen form to help trusts produce their own frequencies specific for their own needs. A single national set of cleaning frequencies would be inappropriate since it could not meet every NHS organisation's needs.


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
483 c2082W; 228273
Session
2007-08
Related items
Deposited Paper DEP2008-2910
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
Deposited papers
House of Commons
Subjects
Hospitals Cleaning services
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk