HEALTH bosses have been told to clean up their act by members of a watchdog which inspected three local hospitals.

The report into hygiene at Maidstone Hospital, Pembury Hospital and the Kent and Sussex Hospital in Tunbridge Wells, found a lack of domestic staff, cleaning equipment and storage space meant some areas of the hospitals did not come up to scratch.

But, despite initial reports that the hospitals' hygiene was a major cause for concern, the report found there were plenty of areas where improvements had been made and where cleanliness was satisfactory.

The report, Hygiene and Cleanliness – a report of inspections of Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells hospitals, was compiled by the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells Hospitals Patient and Public Involvement Forum after five visits between July and November.

The report was the first to be put together by the forum which has only been in existence since December 2003.

None of the inspections were unannounced, but the report's authors said it had been necessary to give 24 hours' notice beforehand.

The report said: "Although in some respects unannounced inspections would have been preferred, the team put a high priority upon engaging the assistance of senior members of staff in order to obtain knowledgeable answers to the many questions that inevitably arose."

The report found storage space for cleaning equipment was lacking in all three hospitals.

At Pembury, the oldest of the three, staff found the operating theatres were very clean, while more attention needed to be given on providing alcohol hand rubs and regular cleaning of bed curtains and air vents.

At the Kent and Sussex, changing rooms for staff came in for criticism, while some wards were described as 'gloomy and depressing'.

Concerns were raised about the lack of staff changing facilities which meant staff wore their uniforms when they went home.

At Maidstone, the wards were found to be the cleanest, well furnished and the least cluttered.

Inspectors noted that, although there were signs telling visitors to wash their hands, in the Jonathan Saunders orthopaedic ward, the cleaning dispensers were empty.

The report made eight recommendations, including increasing the number of cleaning staff and their hours; better storage space and changing facilities; more supervision and clear systems of cleaning, and the need to separate emergency cases and elective surgery patients, to avoid cross infection.

Anne Loveday, chair of the forum, said: "It has been really quite bad before and it is beginning to pull up. I think that is what we should be saying. Things are beginning to move in the right direction. I think everybody including the staff are being very well motivated."

"We are working out how to go forward and will be meeting with key people, such as the domestic supervisor and infection control lead nurse, to work out a timescale for our recommendations to be put through."

She praised managers of the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust for their co-operation and for the improvements they had already made.

Follow-up inspections will be made and it is hoped that most of the recommendations can be implemented within a year.