Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Dr. Cooper and her colleagues for the presentation which stated that 242 cases of MRSA have been identified. Is there a set pattern in terms of the type of hospital or institution where it arose? Does the prevalence of MRSA depend on the number of patients in a unit? Does it depend on the type of medical care being provided, for example, elderly care, maternity care or psychiatric care?

Is there any set pattern in terms of a higher incidence and can we identify how a more aggressive approach can be taken to dealing with the issue and making sure it does not arise?

The issue of low morale in hospitals has been raised with me by people from a number of different medical facilities in the last six months. In some facilities, morale is very low and there is no team approach to the operation of such facilities. Conflict is arising between management and medical staff, between management and nursing staff and between nursing staff and others on the front line. Has HIQA found, during the course of its inspections, that there is a higher degree of non-compliance in facilities where morale is low? Is that apparent from any aspect of the inspections? It is a worrying trend. In the context of what Deputy Dowds raised, I do not agree with the witch hunt approach because I do not think it works. The solution lies in fostering a team effort in all of the medical facilities. Is there a follow-up process by HIQA in terms of how to implement a team effort in the context of reducing the level of non-compliance?