NHS Fife is content that cleaning operations at the Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy are controlled, safe and appropriate, and that the methods being used help to enhance infection control rather than not detract from them.
The assurance has been given after The Courier was contacted by a hospital whistle blower who claimed there is a “major problem” with infection control and general hygiene at the hospital.
The concerned staff member claimed operating theatre staff wandered around in public areas of the building then returned to one of the theatres wearing the same theatre blues, footwear and headgear.
It was also claimed senior surgical staff had been seen going in to wards with blood covered footwear and blood-splattered surgical clothing.
The whistle blower also claimed trained domestic staff are “not being allowed to do their job by their management” because they are not allowed to clean above two metres in height.
It was deemed unsafe for them to do so.
The staff member claimed that to get around not being allowed to clean higher than two metres, tradespeople were being asked to do cleaning.
They were concerned this could incur a new set of infection risks as tradespeople may have been previously unblocking a toilet, clearing a drain, or working in a boiler house or a plant room.
The whistle blower said no accredited training had been given to any of the staff being asked to do additional cleaning duties.
The concerned employee said: “The cleaning and domestic duties should be carried out by properly trained domestic staff but unfortunately the management are preventing them from carrying out their job they were trained to do.
“Trying to force tradesmen to do domestic and clinical cleaning tasks may result in a higher level of infection cases as they may not be as competent at doing these tasks. As they have made clear to various staff that they have no wish to do domestic tasks as this undermines the skill level of both domestic staff and tradesmen.
“Would you get a domestic to fix a door?
“Making someone do a job that isn’t theirs may result in sub-standard work.
“Would you feel comfortable going in for an operation knowing the above-two-metre clinical clean in the theatre was carried out by a plumber, joiner, electrician, labourer or an engineer?”
Asked to comment on the allegations, interim chief executive of NHS Fife, Dr Brian Montgomery, said: “NHS Fife has policies and guidance in place relating to uniform, which are designed to help ensure members of staff who need to go into public areas do so safely.
“In all instances we require staff to adhere to our uniform policy.
“It is important to note that uniformed staff members in public areas do not necessarily work in surgical theatre and many medical disciplines wear blues in the hospital.”
Director of Estates, Facilities, and Capital Investment, Jim Leiper, said: “We are content that the cleaning operations in the hospital are controlled, safe and appropriate, helping to enhance infection control precautions, not detract from them.”