€60m plan to combat deadly CPE superbug
A €60m plan to tackle the spread of a deadly hospital superbug is to be rolled out.
The Government has approved a three-year plan to increase prevention, surveillance and control of the spread of a hospital superbug called Carbapenemase producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE).
Of all the superbugs, CPE is the most resistant to antibiotics, thus difficult to treat, and poses a particular risk to older people and those with reduced immune system function.
The first case of CPE in Ireland was isolated in University Hospital Limerick (UHL) in 2009. The first outbreak in an Irish hospital occurred in UHL in 2011.
However, the bug has since been found in many other hospitals and is a growing cause of concern within the health system — so much so that the Minister for Health declared a national public emergency in October 2017.
The new plan, which will cost in the region of €20m each year, will include increasing CPE screening in hospitals; addressing any issues around infection prevention and control as well as scoping and addressing infrastructural deficits.
A public awareness campaign will also be launched and more education and training will be provided to hospital staff.
Health Minister Simon Harris said: “CPE continues to be a significant threat to the Irish health system and, if not contained, will have significant implications for healthcare delivery in Ireland.
“We are not, however, starting from square one in addressing this challenge. Our three-year National Action Plan, iNAP, provides the structure for tackling healthcare-associated infection and AMR and it builds on the processes and procedures already in place for the provision of a safe health service.”
