Swissmedic finds hygiene gaps in Swiss hospital clean rooms

Swiss hospitals have improved their hygiene practices but still face problems with processes and infrastructure, Swissmedic told SRF. The Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products carried out 28 hospital inspections last year.

Rafael Moreno, a Swissmedic inspector, said hospitals were increasingly complying with and implementing the relevant requirements. However, quality management processes remained inadequate in some cases, while parts of the building infrastructure were outdated.

This can create problems when medical instruments are reprocessed. Dirty and clean areas must be separated as instruments move from a contaminated state to a decontaminated one, Moreno said. In some hospitals, the zones were not clearly separated and became mixed.

Hospitals need clearer divisions between these areas, including airlocks for access to clean rooms and positive pressure in certain rooms, Moreno said. Some facilities lack these measures, and sterile equipment is sometimes stored in rooms that do not meet hygiene requirements.

H+, the hospital association, said it took the Swissmedic report very seriously. Spokesperson Dorit Djelid said the report also showed that improvements had already been introduced. Hospitals recognised the need to improve both their processes and infrastructure.

However, Djelid said many hospitals did not have enough money to invest in modern infrastructure under current conditions. Many hospitals have reported losses in recent years, increasing pressure to cut costs.

Moreno also urged hospitals to invest more in training their own staff, citing an ongoing shortage of qualified personnel. He said more hospitals could train medical device technologists themselves.

H+ also acknowledged the need for action on training, but said such measures could not be implemented quickly and would require time.