Wexham Park Hospital trust ‘leading the UK’ in superbug fight as outbreak persists

The NHS trust running Wexham Park Hospital says it is ‘leading the UK’ in fighting superbug threats as an infectious outbreak nears its second year.

Cases of patients infected with drug-resistant bacteria CPE remain ‘high’ at the Slough hospital since first being detected in June 2023, according to NHS Frimley Health Foundation Trust.

But, having drafted in international and domestic healthcare expertise, the trust says it has become a national example for combating the ‘fast-rising’ problem of superbugs.

A spokesperson said: “Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust is leading the UK in tackling drug-resistant bacteria like CPE, which are rising fast across the country and worldwide, transmitted mostly from hospital wastewater systems.”

Superbugs like CPE [Carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales] are bacteria resistant to almost all powerful antibiotics available to doctors.

CPE can live harmlessly in a person’s gut, though they can cause hard-to-treat infections if they get into blood, urine or open wounds. Infection can be fatal in the most serious cases.

Potential sources of transmission include affected water supplies. A report on the Wexham Park outbreak cited issues with the hospital’s drains acting as CPE ‘super highways’.

To fight back against the bug, the trust has sought advice from national health leaders and drafted in international authorities including representatives from the Netherlands.

‘Pioneering water-safe care’ initiatives at Wexham Park include making its intensive care unit a waterless environment in patient areas, and a project to install a new wastewater system.

Government taskforce the New Hospital Programme visited Wexham Park to see the work combating waterborne superbugs during a visit in late April.

The programme was set up to deliver 40 new and upgraded hospitals across the country.

Seventy-five patients were diagnosed with CPE at Wexham Park over the year 2023 to 2024, with high numbers of cases identified in cancer wards and the intensive care unit.

A mortality review found no patients had died as a direct result of CPE infection. Four people died while being infected with CPE, but the bacteria was not the cause of death.

When approached for comment on updated figures of CPE cases at Wexham Park, the trust said cases ‘may stay high’ due to enhanced monitoring processes it has in place.

An NHS Frimley Health Foundation Trust spokesperson said: “We’ve learned from international hospitals and pioneered water-safe care in the UK, especially in intensive care units.

“This includes removing unnecessary sinks, using wipes, alcohol gels or sterile water for washing, improving sink etiquette, and providing extra staff training.

“We also proactively screen more patients and the hospital environment, so we find more people carrying CPE (this includes patients transferred in for other hospitals and countries) even if they aren’t sick.

“Because of this, our reported numbers may stay high, and under the current rule of having no linked cases in 28 days to declare an outbreak closed, this is unlikely to be achieved with our screening, which is at much higher levels compared to current national recommendations.

“However, this approach helps us treat patients quickly if they develop an infection, improving outcomes.”