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Christina McAnea - the Head of Health for UNISON - has warned of the increasing dangers of infections in UK hospitals where cost cutting and new practices are undermining the battle against infections. Management in Hospitals are under increasing pressure in a context where anti biotics will become less effective and an increasing number of operations are cancelled and wards closed.



This puts Cleaners in the front line. In the NHS nearly 40% of Cleaners are now employed by private contractors such as Sodexo, SERCO and Compass. Operating in what is now a Global market cleaning companies have very few areas to maximise profit other than the terms and conditions they pay cleaners, or the methods they employ to carry out cleaning. Christina points to the use of robots that use hydrogen peroxide and UVC. These are expensive solutions and a waste of NHS resources.



The risk is patients dying of untreatable infections when anti biotics have failed, when intensive hands on cleaning is often the only sure way to reduce infections. This requires more cleaners with better equipment and proper training.



Read the full statement from UNISON



http://www.unison.org.uk/asppresspack/pressrelease_view.asp?id=3040