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What you need to know
Mersey Care Foundation Trust, take preventing and controlling the spread of germs seriously. Patients undergoing treatment in hospital have an increased risk of infection because:
- being unwell can reduce the ability to fight off an infection
- many of the necessary treatments that are given break the body’s natural defences e.g. surgery and antibiotics
So please help yourself and us by reading the advice given in this leaflet.
General personal hygiene
Handwashing is the most important way of preventing infection.
So always remember to wash your hands:
- before and after meals
- after using the toilet or commode
Staff attending to you should also wash their hands. If you want to know if someone’s washed their hands, it’s OK to ask.
Hand sanitiser is available at the entrances to the wards and should be used by everyone when entering and leaving the ward area. If hand sanitiser is not available, please use the next available handwash sink to wash your hands.
If you find the hand gel, soap or hand towels have run out please inform a member of staff.
If you have a wound dressing or catheter speak to your nurse if:
- your wound dressing or catheter becomes loose, or you see any leakage from the wound or site
- you have any pain or redness at the site
Food hygiene
- Due to Food Safety Regulations, we prefer that you don’t bring items of food into the hospital without speaking to the staff.
The Catering Department has a varied choice of menu but will be happy to help with other options if they can. Please ask the ward staff if you require more information.
Leaving your room or ward if you have an infection
To prevent you and other patients from getting an infection and to comply with Health and Safety you may be asked not to leave your room or visit the dining room or other food outlets if you have:
- an infection that means that you have to be cared for in a side room
- an infection that could be passed on to other patients e.g. diarrhoea and/or vomiting
Therefore, please check with your nurse before:
- leaving your room
- visiting public areas of the hospital
Advice for your visitors
Visitors play an important part in helping to prevent the spread of infection. Please ensure your visitors:
- wash or gel their hands when entering and leaving the ward
- are aware of any infection control signs in ward areas
- wear any protective clothing such as aprons, if advised by the nursing staff
- use the chairs available and not to sit on your bed
- Not to visit if feeling unwell or have any symptoms of infection.
- Not to visit if there is an outbreak of diarrhoea and/or vomiting or Flu on your ward, unless previously agreed with ward manager and IPC
- Not to visit if they have been in contact with someone with an infection such as chicken pox, mumps, diarrhoea and/or vomiting without first checking with a member of staff
Patient washing
Patients’ laundry can be taken home and washed as usual. A soluble patient clothing bag can be provided to put soiled clothing in which can then be placed directly into a washing machine. The Trust provides a service for the laundry of soiled patient clothing i.e. contaminated clothing with blood and body fluids.
What to do if you have any concerns about infection control
We welcome your feedback and act on it. Therefore, if you have any concerns please speak to the:
- person in charge of your ward/department
- Patient Advice and Liaison Services
- Infection Prevention and Control Team
Remember these key pointsAntibiotics do not work for a case of the common cold or ‘flu’ Be clear on the nature of your allergies Complete the full course of antibiotics prescribed Use antibiotics responsibly – Misuse of antibiotics causes bacteria to become resistant to the antibiotics. So, when you need antibiotics in the future they may no longer work. |
The antibiotic(s) prescribed by your doctor on discharge have been clinically verified by a Clinical Pharmacist. This means that the following has been confirmed to be safe and appropriate:
- choice of antibiotic
- dose and frequency
- the duration of treatment
- safe to take with your current medications
- safe with your allergy history
If you have any unwanted antibiotics, please return them to a local community Pharmacy or a hospital Pharmacy for safe disposal.
If you have any questions regarding your antibiotics you can speak to your local Pharmacist or discuss any concerns with your GP.
You can also visit the following websites, which discuss antibiotics and the importance of using them responsibly:
https://patient.info/health/antibiotics-leaflet
http://antibioticguardian.com/
For more information contact:
Infection Prevention and Control Department:
Infection
Feedback
Your feedback is important to us and helps us influence care in the future, please use the QR code below to provide feedback on your contact with the Infection Prevention and Control team.
Our patients matter
Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust listens and responds to patients and their carers to help improve the services we deliver.
If you have any comments, compliments or concerns you can speak with a member of staff or contact our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and Complaints Team.
Telephone: 0151 471 2377 Freephone: 0800 328 2941 Email: palsandcomplaints
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Approval date: 8 October 2025
Review date: 8 October 2026
Version number: 1