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Most people equate hospitals as being places where they go to get well. Unfortunately, increasing numbers of patients leave hospital with so-called 'hospitalacquired infections'. In some UK hospitals it has been claimed that the incidence rate is as high as 25%. Good hygiene is essential in all areas in a hospital; without it, the chance of cross-contamination and infection with pathogens increases significantly. The critical hygiene requirement is to identify all risk areas and set up a well-controlled and integrated cleaning and disinfection programme. Currently, one of these critical risk factors is the increasing spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA). An important factor of hygiene planning is therefore managing the use of antibiotics, as indiscriminate use, both in the treatment of patients and in farming, compounds the problem. In Scandinavia, where the use of antibiotics is more regulated, infections with antibiotic-resistant strains are less common. Moreover, Scandinavian countries show that selective disinfection, which means thorough and frequent cleaning of hand contact sites, can result...

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