THE brother of a man who died from MRSA has hit out at hospital bosses after it was revealed a pledge to stop staff wearing uniform outside of work has not been put in place.

Martin Ravenscroft, who lost his 61-year-old brother David Short to the superbug last year, said he was not happy that the key step to slashing infection rates had not begun.

This is despite a pledge by the chief executive of East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, Jo Cubbon, last October to have the policy in place by the end of this month.

A hospital boss today said the first steps towards getting the plan in place would happen in October, a year after the initial pledge.

Official minutes of a meeting between Mrs Cubbon and Mr Ravenscroft said the boss "would be taking a paper to the trust board to support the initiative being implemented fully by July of 2006".

And it said "there would be provision for additional facilities for changing available" at Blackburn's new super hospital, which opened this month.

But finding places for people to change had taken longer than expected, the trust said.

Lynn Wissett, director of clinical care and governance at the trust, said: "Unfortunately it has not been possible to move forward with the plans for new changing facilities as quickly as originally planned."

She added: "We also recognised the need to spend time establishing what opportunities the new hospital buildings we have recently moved into provide us with."

But places have now been identified at Royal Blackburn Hospital and Burnley General Hospital, she said.

Today Mr Ravenscroft, of Topaz Street, Blackburn, said: "I was told it was going to be fully implemented and clearly that hasn't happened."

His brother, who lived in Zion Road, Blackburn, died after contracting MRSA during a routine operation for ulcerative colitis at Queen's Park Hospital on June 27 last year.

Mr Ravenscroft said: "I feel they have gone back on their word.

"I see nurses in town in full uniform and I feel like asking them why they have still got their full uniform on.

"The policy should be implemented like she said it would be."

Mrs Wissett said hospital acquired infections were a priority for the trust.

She added: "A paper will be going to the trust board in October setting out our plans."