One in five hospitals inspected in Ireland last year required a follow-up inspection as a result of poor hygiene and maintenance issues, a new report has revealed.

According to the report from the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA), this represents a major increase when compared to 2014, when just one in 10 hospitals required follow-up inspections.

Altogether, 39 unannounced inspections were carried out in 32 public acute hospitals during 2015, with seven hospitals (22%) requiring a re-inspection. In 2014, just 10% required a re-inspection.

When re-inspected, six of the seven hospitals had dealt with most of the risks identified. However, one of the hospitals had recorded ‘no improvement in the standard of environmental hygiene', HIQA said.

"Some re-occurring findings relating to infrastructural deficiencies and maintenance included units that were outdated with inadequate infrastructure from an infection prevention and control perspective.

"Overcrowding with limited spacing between beds was an issue for staff trying to circulate and manoeuvre patients. The lack of pro-active maintenance programmes resulted in worn and poorly maintained surfaces which do not facilitate effective cleaning," HIQA pointed out.

The inspections included 64 clinical areas, including operating theatres, intensive care units and coronary care units. HIQA found that almost 60% of hospitals needed to improve the preparation, labelling and storage of intravenous medication in their clinical areas. Failing to do this could increase the risk of transmission of infection.

Some of the issues identified included pre-prepared syringes that were not labelled, were not stored properly, or were left unattended.

However, the news was not all bad. According to HIQA's head of healthcare, Susan Cliffe, the 2015 inspections showed that ‘a greater culture of compliance with hand hygiene has begun to emerge in most hospitals'.

"This observation is supported by the reported findings from the HSE national audits that have shown steady improvement over time," she noted.

HIQA added that it will continue its monitoring programme of unannounced inspections throughout 2016.