Patients are refusing treatment because they fear being infected with MRSA, according to the chief nurse at Oxfordshire's major hospitals.

Now Julie Hartley-Jones wants to reduce their fears by giving them the facts about the bug, and other hospital-acquired infections, and explaining how health chiefs are tackling the situation.

Tonight she hosts a public meeting where patients, carers and relatives can question how the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals Trust and other NHS organisations are fighting infections.

The initiative comes six months after the National Audit Office published information about the number of patients infected with MRSA at every hospital trust.

It said 127 people had been infected in the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals, which include Oxford's John Radcliffe and Churchill Hospitals, the Radcliffe Infirmary,and Banbury's Horton Hospital.

The 127 patients represented 0.2 per cent of the 68,556 patients admitted for emergency or routine surgery between April 2003 and March 2004 -- or one in 500.

Ms Hartley-Jones said: "When the National Audit Office data was released last August, there was a lot of concern from people about coming into hospital.

"What we found was a significant increase in patients who had phoned clinical teams to ask them to guarantee they wouldn't get MRSA, while some patients refused to come in for treatment altogether.

"The message that they had obviously got was quite alarming, and we want to make sure they are as well informed as possible. One of the ways we know we can make a difference is by talking to patients about this."

Kathy Topley, acting manager of the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust infection control team, said fears of MRSA had got out of proportion.

"The thing is that it has scared patients to a ridiculous level, to an almost leper-type level," she said. "It's becoming feared as much as HIV."

Members of the public will be encouraged to ask questions at the presentation, which is taking place at The Oxford Centre, 333 Banbury Road, Oxford, at 7-8.30pm tonight.

Bacteria facts

MRSA is not the only microbe that can cause infection. Others include chickenpox, flu and tuberculosis, and it is important to combat them all

There are more bacteria on one person's body than there are people in the world

Most of the microbes that live on us and in our guts work to keep us healthy

Antibiotics can sometimes get rid of some of our friendly bacteria, giving more harmful bacteria a chance to get a foothold and cause infection

Any break in the skin, such as a surgical wound or a drip, gives the opportunity for bacteria to enter and cause an infection

Not all infections in hospital are caused by cross-infection. Many come from bacteria already living on that patient's skin

Most patients that are MRSA positive do not have an infection -- the bacterium is living on their skin but causing no harm

The NHS looks after about 11.4 million patients a year. 300,000 -- less than three per cent -- get infected in hospital

Wearing uniforms in hospital and keeping wards spotless does not prevent infection.