Hospital Infection Claims: When a Hospital-Acquired Infection Is Negligence

Hospital-acquired infections — also called healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) — affect hundreds of thousands of NHS patients each year. While some infections are unavoidable, many result from failures in infection control: inadequate hand hygiene, failure to follow sterile technique during procedures, breaches in surgical site infection prevention protocols, and delayed recognition and treatment of established infection. When a hospital-acquired infection is caused by a failure below the required standard and causes harm, a clinical negligence claim may be available.

Types of hospital-acquired infection in negligence claims

MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)

MRSA is a resistant bacterium that can cause serious wound infections, bloodstream infections (bacteraemia), and sepsis. NHS hospitals are required to screen elective surgical patients for MRSA carriage and to decolonise positive patients before surgery. Failure to screen, failure to decolonise, or breach of contact precautions may give rise to a claim where MRSA infection causes harm.

Clostridium difficile (C. diff)

C. difficile colitis is associated with antibiotic use — which disrupts the normal gut flora. It causes severe diarrhoea, abdominal pain, and can progress to toxic megacolon and death in severe cases. Claims arise where C. diff was caused by inappropriate antibiotic prescribing, or where established C. diff was not recognised and treated in time.

Surgical site infection

Surgical site infections (SSIs) are a leading cause of post-operative harm. Prevention protocols — including prophylactic antibiotics, skin preparation, sterile technique, and wound management — must be followed. Where an SSI is caused by a breach of protocol, or where established infection was not diagnosed and treated promptly, a claim may arise.

Sepsis from a hospital-acquired infection

Where a hospital-acquired infection progresses to sepsis and the sepsis is not recognised and treated promptly, the claim encompasses both the infection and the sepsis management failure. See /sepsis-negligence-claim.

Catheter-associated urinary tract infection

Urinary catheters are a significant source of HAI. Catheters that are inserted without adequate sterile technique, left in place longer than clinically indicated, or not maintained in accordance with infection control protocols can cause urinary tract infections that progress to urosepsis. Claims arise where the catheter management fell below the required standard.

Cannula site infection leading to sepsis

Peripheral intravenous cannulae must be maintained in accordance with infection prevention protocols and replaced at the appropriate interval. A cannula site that becomes infected and is not acted upon can cause bacteraemia and sepsis.

What you need to prove

Hospital infection claims are complex to establish because:

• The precise source of an infection is often difficult to trace
• Many organisms causing HCAIs are also present in the community — the patient may have been a carrier on admission
• Infection is a known risk of many hospital procedures

A claim is most likely to succeed where:

• A specific breach of infection control protocol can be identified — failure to screen, failure to use sterile technique, failure to replace a cannula or catheter
• The infection was caused by an organism linked to other patients or failures in the clinical environment
• The infection was established and not treated in time, causing additional harm

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