All patients admitted to two hospitals will be automatically screened for a potentially fatal superbug.

The routine tests for MRSA will be carried out at Eastbourne District General Hospital and the Conquest Hospital in St Leonards from next month.

The move is ahead of Department of Health guidelines which calls for hospital trusts to screen all inpatients by 2010.

MRSA is short for Meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Staphylococcus aureus is a bacteria that about 30 per cent of the general population carry on their skin or up their nose.

Under usual conditions this bacteria can be carried harmlessly on the human body.

However it can sometimes cause infections when the body's natural defences are breached, such as through a cut or from a surgical procedure such as putting in a drip or catheter.

Currently, most patients admitted for a planned operation are already being screened for MRSA but this is now being extended to include emergency patients.

Patients discovered to be carrying MRSA will be given a decolonisation treatment which reduces the amount of bacteria found on the skin.

This will cut the risk of an MRSA infection.

East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust chief nurse Jane Hentley said: "We are keen to do all we can to ensure patients are treated in a clean, safe environment.

"Infection control and patient safety is a priority.

"Identifying MRSA at an early stage will help reduce the chances of infections occurring and the spread of MRSA to other vulnerable patients."

The trust has introduced a number of measures to reduce cases of MRSA including a hand hygiene campaign and a thorough deep clean of all wards and clinical areas.