Is this mist a miracle?
April 1st 2009

Q Bioshield instantly kills hospital superbugs then creates a hygiene shield to stop their return for up to a year.Andrew Kemp of Q Medical Technologies, explains why it could be the answer to the NHS'prayers

A'miracle mist'which instantly kills hospital superbugs and then lays down an impregnable hygiene shield to stop their return for up to 12 months is poised to transform the infections nightmare gripping the germ ridden NHS.

Its launch in the UK at a small private hospital on the outskirts of Leeds comes at the end of years of research and experimentation by clinical hygiene expert,Andrew Kemp (right), and chemical technologist, Charlie Pillans (left), who have made it their lifetime goal to find a cost effective and super durable method for combating the scourge of superbugs like MRSA and C.difficile.

The mist, known as Q Bioshield, is now in the process of assessment by the NHS's Rapid Review Panel with a view to urging its uptake by Britain's beleaguered acute health trusts – nine out of ten of which were found last week in a major Government programme of hospital inspections to be failing to meet laid down hygiene standards.

"We are absolutely confident we have found the ultra safe and long term effective answer to the major problem of poor hygiene and rampant superbug infections in our hospitals today," says Kemp, a former hospital theatre services manager and specialist advisor on infection control."We have even had confirmation in the past few days from the Malaysian Government's laboratories with whom we are working that it is ultra effective against the dreaded H5N1 bird flu virus.The Miracle Mist really does deliver total peace of mind for every possible area of the medical community." The various chemical components in Q Bioshield are all well known to scientists and medical technologists alike – but Kemp says it is the 'secret formulation' of them by his team at the Lincoln based Q Medical Technologies which is the key to its 'amazing' germ and bacteria beating performance.

Upon being sprayed on any surface, whether steel and melamine, or curtains, soft cushions and bedding,Q Bioshield instantly kills off any germs and superbugs lying there. It then adheres to those surfaces and, via its component polymers and silica molecules, forms a virtually indestructible chemical bond or shield which repels any future bacteria or infectious germs and bugs.

"It delivers near instant peace of mind for doctors, clinicians and administrators alike in terms of infection control in our hospitals, whether NHS or private. Once an operating theatre, clinical ward or any high volume hospital area has been fogged with Q Bioshield then it is germ failsafe for 12 months or more,"explains Kemp.

"Only if the actual surfaces which Q Bioshield has treated are chipped or broken does its defensive shield break down. It is virtually indestructible." Even if surfaces treated with Q Bioshield are repeatedly washed and scoured with detergents and conventional cleaning agents the anti-infection bond remains intact and cannot be broken down.

It is over four years ago that Kemp, who still advises hospitals on the best practice running of operating theatre services and trauma management, first set out on his mission to find the answer to the superbug crisis engulfing the NHS and making patients' safety a nightmare.

One of his keenest supporters was consultant, Jonathan Stanley, who operates the private Yorkshire Foot Hospital and Podiatry Clinic at Pudsey, near Leeds,Yorkshire. Kemp promised him that if he ever found the answer he would let his acute care hospital be the first in the UK to introduce it – and that is why Q Bioshield had its launch at the community hospital rather than at a bigger NHS medical centre.

"We are absolutely delighted to be the first in the country to get it because we are absolutely convinced that this makes us the most hygienic, germ free place to treat patients in Europe," says Stanley.

"And our patients have got peace of mind that Q Bioshield will ensure we stay that way. It gives us a huge competitive edge over our competitors in the private medical marketplace." The logistics and finance of using Q Bioshield in hospitals, clinics and front line medical centres are simple. Specialist fogging teams can treat a ward or operating theatre in a few hours and within three or four hours it will have fully dried for the areas to be then put back into full operation.

In terms of cost, it depends on the size of areas to be fogged and the amount of shelving, furniture and cupboards etc. in the zones to be sanitised.An average surgical ward or theatre would probably cost £8,000 – £10,000 per fogging, and this could be expected to deliver deep infection control and patient protection for 12 months or more.

Contrast this with a recent study published by the British Medical Journal which has shown that nine out of 10 hospital trusts throughout the UK are currently facing millions of pounds in fines over superbugs such as MRSA and C.difficile and are specifically setting aside huge swathes of money to pay these penalties rather than plough it into patient care.