THE NHS trust that runs Whiston Hospital is working against the clock to resolve an MRSA appeal.

In a board meeting of St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, it was revealed the trust had two confirmed cases of MRSA bacteraemia in 2017-18.

One was a contaminated sample, but the other is currently under appeal and the trust has until the end of April to resolve the case, or it will be penalised.

Ann Marr, chief executive of the trust, said: “It’s a great blight on our reputation if that’s not sorted out.”

Richard Fraser, chairman of the board, said he was “concerned” and “disappointed” the appeal has not been resolved.

In the trust’s Finance and Performance Committee report for March, a deadline of April 1 was set to resolve the case, although this has now passed.

During the meeting, it was also revealed that the trust had four confirmed cases of MRSA bacteraemia in 2016-17, although one sample was contaminated.

All cases of MRSA at the hospital in 2016-17 were subject to a multi-disciplinary Post Infection Review (PIR).

The review highlighted a need for improvement in a number of areas, including blood culture taking and MRSA screening. The trust also created and MRSA Action Plan.

The trust has a zero tolerance of MRSA, which is resistant to several widely used antibiotics and mainly affects people who are staying in hospital.