A conclusion seems to have come about in the row over whether bibles and other religious items should be allowed to be left on bedside of patients in Leicester hospitals. News-Medical.net has reported that the hospital ward will now simply give the bibles to patients to take home with them when they are released.

The furore reportedly came about due to worries that the religious texts could offend people from other faith groups who are receiving treatment, and addition there are fears that Bibles may spread the MRSA infection. These fears led to allegations that Leicester hospitals were proposing to ban bibles from hospital bedsides.

The Christian Medical Fellowship (CMF) reacted to the reports of the ban on Gideon International Bibles, as Peter Saunders, CMF General Secretary expressed, that the MRSA risk is extremely low and if the hospitals want to be consistent, they would have to ban newspapers, library books and all papers from patients' bedsides as well.

The CMF also added that the ban shows a profound ignorance of the link between spirituality and health. Recent major studies in the British Medical Journal showed that religious faith, especially Christian faith, has had a positive impact on physical health.

It has been claimed that longer life, less illness, better physical and mental health, recovering from surgery and much more, is a natural by-product of religious faith, which health authorities should be keen to promote to improve treatment outcomes.

"It is deeply ironic that such a ban is being considered in a country were 70% of the national census still claim to be Christian and where members of other faiths have not been offended," concluded Mr. Saunders and added that the hospital chiefs are shooting themselves in the foot in respect to promoting health.

However, Leicester Health Trust have simply reemphasised that they simply want to reduce the risk open to patients die to MRSA infection risks that the Bibles and other religious materials may pass on.

An embarrassing public relations debacle followed for Leicester Health Trust, as media jumped on initial reports.

The Great Western Hospital in Swindon has said that it was minimising health risks by handing bibles out for the patients to keep after their visit, reported News-Medical.net.