The revised Memorandum of Understanding between HSE and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is now available on both the HSE and CQC websites. http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/howwework/framework/mou/mou-cqc-hse-la.pdf http://www.cqc.org.uk/sites/default/files/20180202_mou_between_cqc_hse_las.pdf The document outlines the respective responsibilities of CQC, HSE and local authorities in England when dealing with health and safety incidents in the health and adult social care sectors.  It… Read more »

FREE access paper: May car washing represent a risk for Legionella infection? Background Legionella is a ubiquitous Gram-negative bacterium naturally found in aquatic environments. It can pose a health problem when it grows and spreads in man-made water systems. Legionella pneumo-phila is the most common cause of Legionnaires’ disease nowadays, a community-acquired pneumonia with pulmonary… Read more »

Legionella pneumophila is a gram-negative bacterium that inhabits freshwater ecosystems, where it is present in biofilm or as planktonic form. L. pneumophila is mainly found associated with protozoa, which serve as protection from hostile environments and as replication niche. If inhaled within aerosols, L. pneumophila is also able to infect and replicate in human alveolar… Read more »

Legionella pneumophila was recognized as human pathogen in 1976 after a devastating outbreak of pneumonia, termed Legionnaires’ disease, at an American Legion convention (Fraser et al., 1977; McDade et al., 1977). Investigations into the epidemiological and pathological mechanisms soon established that L. pneumophila is a ubiquitous, facultative intracellular pathogen of protozoa (Rowbotham, 1980), which, after… Read more »

Laboratory reports of respiratory infections made to PHE from PHE and NHS laboratories in England and Wales: weeks 48 to 52, 2017   Updated 5 January 2018   READ MORE

During 2013-2014, the CDC received 42 reports of disease outbreaks in the United States related to drinking water, with 57% of them linked to Legionella, the bacterium that causes legionnaires disease, according to recent findings.   READ MORE

Laboratory reports of respiratory infections made to PHE from PHE and NHS laboratories in England and Wales: weeks 44 to 47, 2017 Updated 1 December 2017   READ MORE

Laboratory reports of respiratory infections made to PHE from PHE and NHS laboratories in England and Wales: weeks 27 to 30, 2017   Updated 1 December 2017   READ MORE

PHE has been supporting the ECDC response to an increased number of Legionnaires’ Disease cases in EU residents, associated with travel to Dubai, recorded over the past year in the EU agency’s ELDSnet surveillance system of travel-related LD cases in EU residents.   READ MORE

The scope of mandatory reporting to PHE of healthcare-associated infections recorded by NHS Acute Trusts and Independent Healthcare Providers in England has been extended to include Klebsiella spp. and Pseudomonas aeruginosa bloodstream infections (bacteraemia), NHS Improvement announced in a letter to Trusts on 18 September [1].   READ MORE