SOMEONE close to me was discharged from hospital last week after being given a clean bill of health.

Once home my friend, whose child was born prematurely, lavished praise on the doctors and nurses who had cared for her during a ten-day stay at the hospital.

Now, seeing as most people have nothing but contempt for the NHS, I found her kind words a little difficult to swallow. But it wasn't long before I realised her short time away had been in the hands of well-paid professionals in the swanky surroundings of private care.

God bless BUPA. After all they would have to drag me kicking and screaming if I had to go anywhere near Wycombe Hospital.

Regardless of whether Buckingham-shire Hospital NHS Trust has the tenth lowest MRSA figures of the country's 45 specialist trusts, the place makes me nervous.

In fact, I get ill just at the thought of being treated on an NHS ward a condition I've developed over the past three years of highlighting hospital shortcomings.

Actually, in all fairness, I don't expect there's anything particularly wrong with Wycombe Hospital. As far as I can see, it's just NHS-run hospitals in general.

Everything in many UK hospitals, from the salty purees they dish up as food to the apparent lack of time staff have for patients, points towards a public service in turmoil. So the least said about MRSA the better. Except to say that it's imperative something is done, now, to improve hygiene and put minds at rest.

Just as speed limits are controversially enforced to save lives and improve safety, it's for the very same reason enforcement measures should be rolled out across our hospitals.

On the issue of hygiene, I believe hospital bosses across the land should be made criminally responsible for bugs such as MRSA when it results in someone becoming seriously ill. There are laws governing food factories and retail outlets, so why not apply the same strict rules to patient care and I don't mean a week's quarantine before visiting a relative.

But somewhere down the line it appears someone has tried to trivialise the matter. Indeed some NHS boffs around the country have even tried to shift the blame onto visitors.

How can we expect to eradicate superbugs when those ultimately responsible continue to sidestep the issue?

Senior personnel should be dedicated to ensuring a clean and safe environment for all who dare enter within.