SALISBURY NHS Healthcare Trust's new chairman has been speaking exclusively to the Journal about his vision for the city's hospital.

Chosen by the Appointments Commission, Luke March (53) started in the post on January 1, replacing David Noble, who retired on October 31, after eight year's service.

Mr March commented on the threat of MRSA, waiting lists and recruitment, as well as the success of the hospital in achieving "flagship status" through good leadership, management and dedicated staff.

He said: "I have joined a hugely successful hospital with satisfied patients, a very motivated workforce and a significant, ongoing improvement in facilities.

"Our vision is to be best in the class in what we do best, and what we do best is all the standard procedures within a big, district hospital.

"The vision is not only about solidarity, but also about building on achievements and we are intending to look at the possibility of bringing other specialisms to Salisbury, but don't have any obvious plans yet," he said.

Mr March, who is married and lives in Great Durnford, comes with a wealth of NHS experience, having worked as a member of Winchester Health Authority and as non-executive director and deputy chair of Barts and London NHS Trust.

Speaking about the threat of the hospital superbug MRSA, he said Salisbury hospital had low cases of infection, but staff were "determined" to get it down to zero.

One way of tackling it was by keeping cleaning "in-house" to ensure cleaner conditions for patients and visitors.

"Cleanliness is non-negotiable in the hospital, and just by people being unwell means that any infection travels," he said.

"It is the simple things, not just keeping the corridors clear and clean, but washing hands, and I know from experience, it is something which is so fundamental. We want to ensure patients are adequately protected and we won't rest on our laurels."

He said the hospital always looks to improve the service it offers its patients, to provide seamless, integrated facilities.

Problems with the out of hours GP service in Salisbury meant greater pressures had been placed on staff at the hospital's A&E department recently, but stressed the situation was being closely monitored.

On the topic of waiting lists, he said the hospital was always striving for improvement and hoped to bring times down from nine months to six months.

On nursing, he commented that recruiting from the local community was vitally important.

"We only go outside the local community for reasons of cost, where we need to find levels of professional expertise. Our experience of recruiting nurses and other people outside our local community is exceptionally successful, but the pressure of recruiting qualified people locally is always a challenge."