Nurses call for 400,000 extra uniforms

Hundreds of thousands of nurses have too few uniforms to wear a clean outfit for work each day, it was revealed today.

The news came as the Royal College of Nursing launched a campaign to tackle the MRSA crisis.

Some nurses have been criticised for wearing uniforms outside work, which could lead to a spread

of infections picked up on the fabric. But the RCN said today that members do not have enough uniforms and that some hospitals are so short of facilities they have to change in patient lavatories. Its 10-point plan calls on the next Government to invest hundreds of thousands of pounds in new uniforms, introduce 24-hour cleaning teams and train all staff in infection control.

The call came as the Tories pledged ?10million to enable all NHS hospital trusts to introduce

state-of-the-art nasal swab testing technology so MRSA can be diagnosed in hours rather than days.

General secretary Beverly Malone told the RCN congress in Harrogate that the problem cannot be solved with hand-washing measures alone.

At least 400,000 extra uniforms were needed, she said.

"It's common sense that healthcare staff should have a separate uniform for every shift they work," Dr Malone added, launching the RCN's Wipe it Out campaign.

"But we know this often isn't the case - and the implications for infection control are obvious."

She also called on the next Government to make sure hospitals provide changing and laundry and facilities so staff do not have to travel to and from work in their uniforms, and so they can know the garments have been washed at a high enough temperature to kill possible infections.

Research in tomorrow's Nursing Standard found that fewer than half of all NHS hospital trusts provide enough uniforms.

The study also found that two thirds of hospitals have no laundry services for nurses and that 90 per cent of healthcare staff wash their own uniforms at home.

Ms Malone added: "We've heard an awful lot about how the different parties would tackle MRSA.

"But we know it will be nurses and other healthcare staff who help wipe it out, not politicians."