On October 3, 2008, Ontario hospitals will begin posting infection rates of Clostridium difficile (C. diff) as part of a new government requirement, reports The Canadian Press.

Ontario's 157 hospitals are required to publicly report the infection rate for August and monthly thereafter, but do not have to submit the number of deaths related to infection.

By the end of the year, the hospitals will also have to report on Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci.

Auckland hospitals are short of patient beds, jeopardizing patient safety, reports the New Zealand Herald.

The Auckland District Health Board committee was presented with evidence of overcrowding leading to poor patient safety. Emergency medicine specialists have called for a 15% increase of inpatient beds, reports the Herald. Evidence also shows that hospitals are currently running at greater than 90% occupancy.

The British Medical Association (BMA) hasissued a statement supporting a proposol by the European Commission (EC) that UK patients have more power to receive medical treatment throughout Europe, according to the International Medical Travel Journal (IMTJ).

The BMA did, however, state that patients must be aware of issues that may arise when seeking treatment abroad, such as lingual and cultural differences, and also noted that patients might have potential problems with continuity of care.

IMTJ also reports that the BMA called for a set of minimum quality standards for patient care overseen by the EC, as well as a compensation system for victims of unexpected harm as a result ofthe change.

Hospitals in Thailand are implementing "lean manufacturing" principles in an attempt to increase patient flow and decrease hindering paperwork, reports The Nation.

The Institute of Hospital Quality Improvement and Accreditation and the Thailand Productivity Institute are collaborating to implement the system of hospital management to hospitals. The system is based on well-known strategies of production Toyota used to grow into a worldwide automaker.

Hospitals are to focus on treatment, patient discharge, and laboratories, according to the Nation.