A HOSPITAL has refuted claims it has worryingly high levels of the MRSA superbug.

The survey, in The Sun newspaper, singled out a number of hospitals, including Newcastle General.

It used swab tests to identify where the bug was present in the hospital, with swabs analysed in a laboratory.

Newcastle General Hospital was said to have "really cleaned up", but the bug was still present on accident and emergency door panels, stair rails, toilet flush handles and waiting room tables.

Sheila Morgan, consultant nurse in infection control at the hospital, said the survey did not provide a fair comparison due to the methods used to identify the bug.

She said the hospital was on top of the bug, adding: "Our policies on MRSA have been in place for many years and are constantly updated to reflect national guidance.

"We also have a lot of pro-active laboratory methods that help to identify patients who may be carrying MRSA.

"We make sure we keep everything as clean as possible, but things like doors and handles are handled all of the time and, as such, are impracticable to disinfect."

The MRSA bug is generally not a threat to healthy people, but if it gets into a wound or into the bloodstream of a very ill patient, it can be fatal.

Last month, it was revealed that two North-East hospitals are on a list of 50 nationwide that registered five or more MRSA-related deaths in 2002.

Bishop Auckland General Hospital, County Durham, recorded five and the Freeman Hospital, in Newcastle, nine.