The government wants to cut MRSA infections in half by 2008

Only the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital has seen an increase in the rate of MRSA.

Plymouth's Derriford Hospital, the largest in the region, has the lowest infection rate for Devon and Cornwall.

The figures by the Department of Health are for the six months to September last year. Hospitals are compared by rates of infection per 1,000 bed days.

CASES OF MRSE APR TO SEPT 05 (APR TO SEPT 04 IN BRACKETS) Derriford 28 (40) Royal Cornwall 32 (36) North Devon 9 (12) Torbay 15 (17) Royal Devon & Exeter 26 (18)

Specialist hospitals are at greater risk of higher infection rates because they see the worst cases and do more invasive procedures.

In a statement Dr Peter Jenks, the director of infection prevention and control at Derriford Hospital, said: "We are absolutely delighted. This is a significant breakthrough in our battle against healthcare-acquired infections.

"It is reassuring for our patients and reflects all the hard work that has been done by the infection control team and staff throughout the hospital."

The director of nursing at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro said a number of measures had been put in place to fight healthcare-acquired infection.

Denise Samuels said: "We hope that these latest figures are an indication that these are beginning to have an impact. "