Superbug ward to close at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital

An isolation ward at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital for patients with MRSA or other infections is to be closed as health chiefs claimed they were on the way to winning the war against superbugs.

Ward 22C will now accommodate general patients to cope with an expected surge in admissions during the winter. Patients with superbugs will still be treated in isolation but in side wards.

Vicky Morris, director of quality and safety at the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, said: "Due to the trust's excellent record in fighting healthcare associated infections we are looking to move from isolating patients in the cohort ward to using side rooms in the appropriate specialty wards as happens in most hospitals.

"In future, this would allow us to use Ward 22C to cater for the increase in demand we would expect to see during the winter, while also remaining available for isolation purposes if and when required."

The move has been slammed as 'disgusting' by a woman who saw a relative die on Ward 22.