08/04/2014 Spotlight

London. If you want more details, you can head to our website. Now on

An increase in hospital infdction BBC One we join

An increase in hospital infdction rates ` cases of Clostridiul

Difficile at the Royal Cornwall are double what they should be. Good

evening, the region's biggest hospital, Derriford, has also

breached its own targets for rates of the infection. If not de`lt with

promptly, it can be fatal, particularly in vulnerable patients.

The victim of an alleged attempted murder looks into the eyes of his ``

her attacker. And a region voted best holhday

destination. Two hospitals in the Southwdst have

mist their targets for controlling infections in the last year. The

Royal Cornwall Hospital and Derriford hospital have had more

cases of Clostridium Diffichle than was expected. The infection causes

serious gastric problems and can be fatal. At Derriford Hospital in

Plymouth there were 34 cases of C`Diff against a target of 25. And

at the Royal Cornwall 41 people were infected. The target for thd Truro

hospital was 20. Spotlights David George has this report. Rosdmary was

admitted to the hospital with a broken leg but died after bdcoming

infected with Clostridium Dhfficile. That was six years ago. Her husband

and daughter have watched as the number of cases has decreasdd over

the years until now. They are disappointed to see them rise again.

It is easily detected by tasks in the microbiology labs. It lhves

inside of 3% of us but only causes symptoms when other bacteri` are

reduced, often due to antibhotic use. The Royal Cornwall Hospital is

doubling its efforts to fight the infection. A doctor always records

the reason for the prescription and the date in which the antibhotic

should be reviewed. This is to emphasise the need for all doctors

and all prescribers to be c`reful in antibiotic prescribing. We have had

a push on hand hygiene and cleanliness. Doctors say although

there has been this increasd in the last year, these have been

individual cases and they h`ven t been spread between patients on the

wards. That is some comfort to Rosemary's family. It gives us hope

that they are controlling it in hospital. To put our minds `t rest,

we wanted to know whether it has come into the hospital and not

transmitted from patient to patient which was what happened with us At

Hereford Hospital they say they are the victims of the tough target

regime. They do provide that incentive to get the resources to

drive improvements but on the other hand, it is difficult for the public

to understand when it looks like you have failed. We are doing work here,

we had just had a difficult target to hit. Doctors point out that we

can combat C`Diff by regularly washing our hands with simple soap

and water. A jury's been told of the ddranged,

murderous and so evil eyes of an attacker as he stabbed a wolan

repeatedly on the streets of Exeter, after what's claimed to be ` five

year campaign of stalking. Giving evidence today, Helen Pearson said

she felt let down by Devon `nd Cornwall police for not catching the

stalker. Joe Willis admits causing grievous bodily harm, but ddnies

attempted murder. Our Home @ffairs Correspondent Simon Hall reports

from Exeter Crown Court. Sometimes struggling for words,

Helen Pearson on the rights told the jury about the attack. I thought I

was going to be killed, she said. I struggled, screamed and ple`ded The

look in his eyes was full of murder, so evil and deranged. The

prosecution say the attack followed a long campaign of stalking. Her

five years of hell. There wdre attacks on her flat and cart with

threatening letters and phone calls. She told the jury it

dominated her life and was left feeling sick, ill and terrified I

had suicidal thoughts, she said I thought it would go on and on. The

jury was told she reported lore than 100 incidents of stalking to the

police but they failed to fhnd the culprit. She felt let down by that.

Her family hired a private investigator in an attempt to stop

the stalk about the attacks continued. The stabbing happened

last year near Exeter city centre. A witness told the court the lan was

armed with a pair of scissors like a dressmaker would use. Miss Pearson

told the jury that throughott her ordeal, the attacker did not say a

word. The prosecution expected to conclude their case tomorrow. The

child is scheduled to end ndxt week. `` the trial is scheduled to end

next week. He denies attempted murder.

A Plymouth woman has been sdntenced to life imprisonment for murdering

her bedridden mother by smothering her with a pillow. The court heard

that Angela Douglas views hdrself as a monster for what she had done to

73`year`old Anne Matthews and deeply regrets her actions. Philippa Mina

reports. 49`year`old Angela Douglas struggled to contain her emotions as

the judge delivered his sentence of life imprisonment with a minimum of

12 years. The judge told her that the facts of this case were

depressingly commonplace and it is a fact of life that many people have

to deal with sick elderly and dying relatives. He said, " I don't accept

that you were under any mord stress than others. " . It was Aprhl last

year when Douglas visit the home of her elderly parents in Plymouth She

called to lunch to the family and strength a large amount of `lcohol.

Her father and partner went out and she went upstairs and smothdred

73`year`old and `` ten 1`macro with a pillow. Her mum was suffering from

emphysema and had difficultx breathing and she believes she was

carrying out an act of mercx. The judge rejected that this was an

assisted suicide. When the paramedics arrived, she told them to

let her mother die. Devon and all police recognise the trial has been

a highly emotive time for the family and state:

The judge recognised Angela Douglas' distress and remorse for

what she had done in merger and her mother. Her son called out, "I love

you mum, " as she was led from court.

A 73`year`old man has died `fter his wheelchair went into the Kingsbridge

Estuary. Emergency crews trhed to resuscitate the pensioner after

police pulled him from the water late last night. He was airlifted to

Derriford Hospital, where hd was later pronounced dead. Officers

don't believe the incident was suspicious.

It's been revealed the man who's body was found off the Dorsdt coast

yesterday was the Vicar of Burton Bradstock. 59`year old`Reverend Bob

Thorn had just completed a solo row between Portscatho in Cornw`ll to

Branscombe in East Devon. Hhs boat was found yesterday morning at

Seatown. Colleagues paid trhbute to him saying "Bob was a remarkable man

of incredible determination.' Residents in the East Devon village

of Feniton are claiming a vhctory for people power tonight, after

plans for more than 200 new homes were turned down. A planning

inspector has dismissed thrde appeals by developers. One scheme to

build 32 properties has been approved. As Hamish Marshall

reports, people in the vill`ge started a fund to help fight the

plans. A site many people lhving in Feniton feared they would sde more

and more of. Building work goes on here but on three others th`t would

have seen more than 200 houses built, it won't be allowed to start.

Joe would have had a ringside seat. Land would have been turned over to

housing and industrial units. She was one of dozens of villagdrs who

fought. They argued there w`s a lack of infrastructure and feared more

flooding to an area which h`s suffered on a number of occ`sions in

recent years. Sundays we thought we were making headway and othdrs we

thought we were going to lose it. Since the enquiry stopped, we have

been waiting for the results. It has been like living in limbo. Xou hope

and pray it will be the right decision, which it has been. The

rejection of the appeals was made by a planning inspector after ` super

enquiry. A report said: She approved one set of plans for 32

houses saying the benefits would clearly outweigh the harm. This is

where they will be built. L`nd which has been developed but it is a small

increase in the size of the alleged that could have been the case. 2%

would change the village colpletely. We were looking at it turning into

Feniton Newtown more than Fdniton village. It required a much broader

consultation with the residdnts who should have come to it with full

agreement rather than having it forced upon them. The inspector

notes a refusal means the loss of affordable housing but camp`igners

say her decision proves thex are not NIMBYs. None of the developdrs we

contacted would comment. Divers and fishermen say visibility

in the sea around the South West is very poor in places and this

winter's storms maybe to bl`me. Scientists have been testing the

waters around our region after concerns were raised that the sea

had a milky appearance. It's thought the storms churned up the sda bed.

Our Environment Correspondent Adrian Campbell has been finding ott more.

Plymouth Marine laboratory looks at the waters around the south`west

using the latest technology that can analyse how much said is in ``

sediment is in sea water. On some of the bigger storms in early February,

we were recording waves of over 15 metres. The action of these waves

has stirred up the sea bed so we are getting fine particles that haven't

seen the light of day for htndreds of years Summit `` suspended in the

water column. Because they `re small, they are taking a long time

to settle out. This satellite image shows how the massive winter storms

churned up our seas. The red and yellow show where the water

contained the most sediment but this month, things started to calm down

although they have got some way to go until they return to the

long`term average. The south`west's diving community is concerndd by

what has happened, especially in the waters close to rain heading

south`west Cornwall. 1 millhon tonnes of dredged material from

Devonport dockyard has been deposited over the last dec`de.

Keith Hiscock has been diving here for many years. In terms of the

Bosch `` offshore reefs, we be expecting ten metres visibility at

this time of year. What we `re getting is three metres vishbility.

Inshore, we are expecting fhve metres has ability and it is only

one metre out there. It could be months before the south`west gets

their normal clarity. It is another legacy of the winter's storly

weather. A Devon woman says she's furious

after waiting nearly a year for a BT phone line. In June last ye`r,

Christine Axford from Clawton near Holsworthy put the order in but

she's still waiting. Calls to BT to try to resolve the issue ard racking

up big bills on her mobile phone. BT has apologised for the delax, saying

it's a complex job. Spotlight's North Devon reporter, Andre` Ormsby,

has been to investigate. Christine and her husband moved into their new

house at the beginning of Ddcember but it was months before th`t in

June that they ordered their phone line. Ten months on, nothing but a

very big pile of letters. This letter states the plan is to get you

up and running by midnight on the 18th of September 2013. We `re still

waiting. She has to rely on her mobile phone and it only works in

one part of the house. This is my only point of contact at thd moment.

I have to come to this window because it is the only placd I get a

good reception. My last call was on Friday to BT and I was on the phone

for an hour to get an updatd of the order. I can't cope with thdse

calls. It is ?6 was my last bill and I dread to think what it wotld be

this month. Normally it is `round ?10. After months of confushon, BT

says there is a blocked duct which needs to be fixed. I have told them

it is a fiasco. If I was running a business like that, we would have

gone under by now. For Christine and her husband, it is

not quick enough. Their landline still has no dialling tone.

In a moment we will find out why Torquay has been voted one of the

best places to visit in the UK. We have had exclusive access to

swimming coach Jon Rudd as he prepares to train England's

Commonwealth Games squad. And it's time to play the music; it's time to

light the lights as Taunton's Brewhouse Theatre re`opens tonight.

Which is your favourite South West resort? Perhaps it's Newquax or

maybe St Ives. It could be Weymouth in Dorset or Croyde in North Devon.

Well according to the users of a well known travel website the

highest rated resort in the UK is Torquay.

It's been described as the third best destination in the country

after London and Edinburgh. As Emma Ruminski reports it's an accolade

which has been warmly welcoled by those trying to promote Torbay as a

holiday resort. London was number one on thd list

but it seemed bigger when I was there last. This miniature village

is small in stature but it has a big reputation in the rankings. The trip

advisor collated the reviews left by visitors to hotels and attr`ctions

across the UK for the last xear Torquay came third after London and

Edinburgh in the best destination category. We undertook rese`rch

which showed how people look at a possible hotel and then go `nd look

at reviews and then go on to balk. Cost `` customer comment is more

important than what a busindss has about a business. It has to compete

with places like London. Whx has it done so well in a list dominated by

big cities? It is one of those destinations on the rise. L`st year

it was eighth in the UK. Ond of the reasons is partly that it is a

gateway to the south`west and we know how popular that is with

tourists both domestically `nd internationally. Torquay has a lot

to offer and it is one of only two seaside destinations to makd the UK

ten. Overall bookings are estimated to be slightly down this Easter

after recent storms and real problems. They hope this good

publicity will turn into more visitors. It will be beneficial for

the desert `` resort. We ard delighted that we will be fdatured

so prominently. There are some tables that Torquay is never really

destined to top but I hear the stadium is overrated anyway.

Well you've been emailing your comments and posting on sochal

media. The Commonwealth Games swimling

trials have started today, with Plymouth Leander head coach Jon Rudd

leading England's bid for mddals in Glasgow this July. He's famdd for

producing top class swimmers, including Olympic and World champion

Ruta Meilutyte. Jon has givdn Spotlight exclusive access to his

work, but as Dave Gibbins discovered, it was an extrelely

early start to the day. Good morning. This is a mid mornhng at

5:15am. Why do you start so early? It is the only time we can get a

decent training session in before they have to be at university and

school. Jon Rudd's swimmers want to be the best. They visit herd five

days a week. There is anothdr two hours in Nepal following thdir

day's studies. Each one of them is different. They are of diffdrent

ages and come from different countries. Some have exams, some

have university and they do things at different times. It can `ffect

the way they train and compdte. It is quite important for me to know

them as individuals so I can respond to those changes in their lhves and

help them through. Queen of the pool is Ruta Meilutyte, a 16`year`old

Lithuanian who lives in Plylouth, swims in Plymouth and swims for

Plymouth Leander. They use interesting techniques. This is

assisted speed. These guys `re drop`dead sprinters. They do the

shortest events. After the training, John is back at his base in Plymouth

College to iron out problems. Do you provide any drug testing on your

products? He has a relaxation period. I am pretty good at

sleeping, it just isn't necdssarily at the right time. I will sdttle

down on an evening and start watching a movie and I alwaxs miss

the second half. While he rtns around come his woman is always

think of success and he won't accept anything less.

There's a couple of key gamds in tonights football. Yeovil Town could

improve their chances of escaping relegation from the Championship if

they win at Charlton Athlethc, who are just three points above them.

And in League Two, nothing less than a victory at Newport County will do

for Plymouth Argyle who are losing ground on the play`offs. Thdre'll be

live coverage on BBC Radio Devon and BBC Somerset.

One of Somerset's premier theatres re`opens tonight ` more than a year

after it's funding dried up. The Brewhouse in Taunton is now being

run by a community group who are convinced they can make it work

The Scout and Guide Gang Show will bring the curtain up on the new look

theatre. Clinton Rogers has been to see final rehearsals. You h`ve spent

so long rehearsing for this. It is the 25th anniversary of the Taunton

gang show. In spite of what they say, it is not curtain down, it is

curtain up on the newly reopened Brewhouse Theatre. The first live

show here for more than a ydar. No pressure. You are worried bdcause

you don't want to get it wrong. There is a bit of pressure. We have

to make people know that thd Brewhouse Theatre is open. Those in

charge simply ran out of money blaming funding cuts. Since then,

the local council have given a five`year lease to a communhty group

and they are pinning their hopes on volunteer support. Everyone here

today from the directors to those dusting the tables, stocking the

bar, carrying out running rdpairs, sorting the admin and booking new

acts, all unpaid. When you have people who volunteer, they put their

hearts into things which is often not the case when you are rdlying on

paid staff who feel it is dragging down. It is tough, I am not saying

it is easy. It is riding on a wave of public and Museum `` public

enthusiasm at the moment. The acid test will can they sustain that long

term. Will they be able to laintain the enthusiasm of the volunteers who

will keep this play is runnhng? Will they succeed where their business

model failed? Break a leg to all involved. Now for

the weather. We have some fine weather to look

forward to. We may see a fuchsia was tomorrow but don't be too

disappointed. It is fine and dry and we will get some sunshine which will

be best in the morning. We have some mist forming overnight tonight. A

cold night than it was last night. Tonight could be even colder than

last night. That is the big satellite pictures showing the most

of the Atlantic. There is a hole in the cloud and that is the area of

low pressure getting closer. By midday tomorrow, it will retreat

back into the Atlantic. We have one weather system coming from the north

to produce a fuchsia hours overnight on Thursday. That is the cloud

structure from earlier todax. There has been a lot of clear sky. Our

cameraman got some beautiful shots of the blue sky and a picturesque

harbour in Mevagissey. This was three or four weeks ago when we have

the gale force winds. A bredze has held the temperatures down `nd it

will ease off very quickly overnight tonight. It will turn cold `nd the

temperatures will be well into single figures. We could have some

fog patches tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning, it would be a cold

start. Through the morning `nd into the afternoon, there will bd more

cloud developing. It might produce a few light showers. There is a gentle

breeze from the west or south West and in the sunshine, we will get

temperatures up to 14 Celsits. Onto the forecast for the Isles of

Scilly, plenty of sunshine. It is dry with good visibility.

The outlook is a dry one. Thursday evening, there is a possibility of a

few light spots of rain but most of the day on Thursday is dry. Early

showers on Friday which will be clearing and the weekend is a dry

one with temperatures around 13 Celsius.

That is it from us this Tuesday night. There was test there will be

hourly updates on your BBC local radio station. Have a good dvening.

Goodbye.