The UK has one of the highest levels of infections in Europe

The demonstrations, organised by the Pennine Acute NHS Trust, are part of a wider campaign to tackle the problem of infection in hospitals.

The aim at the Bury, Rochdale, Oldham and North Manchester hospitals is to stop bacteria spreading through simple rules of hygiene like hand-washing.

It is part of the government's attempt to crackdown on cases of MRSA.

Fighting the hospital "superbug" MRSA was recently announced by the Health Secretary, John Reid, as a priority for the government's newly-appointed chief nursing officer.

'Inherited situation'

Many things that had caused the infections - old hospitals, a lack of single rooms, lack of staff - were being tackled, Mr Reid said.

He said: "We inherited a situation where the hospitals were run down and staff were short."

Mr Reid went on to say that he believed that cleanliness in hospitals should be the responsibility of the nurses and the matrons.

The UK has one of the highest levels of hospital infections in Europe. They are estimated to cost the NHS about �1bn a year.

John Reid says infection causes are being tackled

Pennine Acute NHS Trust is one of the biggest and busiest trusts in the country.

Covering four hospitals in the region including North Manchester General, Fairfield General in Bury, Rochdale Infirmary and the Royal Oldham, it employs 10,000 staff.

With the recent high profile MRSA cases, there is a growing pressure to tackle the issue.

A spokesman from Pennine Acute NHS Trust said that good hygiene "begins with the very basics, and that means washing your hands".

The message is not just targeted at hospital staff. Visitors suffering from coughs, colds or stomach bugs are advised to call the ward first.