A new study involving 44 hospitals has found that just under 5% of patients contracted a hospital infection.
The Health Service Executive says that the figure compares favourably with data for other countries and that Ireland was found to have a lower rate of MRSA infection than Britain.
The study by the Hospital Infection Society involved over 7,500 patients.
Commissioned by the HSE, it highlights some dramatic variations in rates between hospitals. The South Infirmary - Victoria University Hospital in Cork recorded a rate of infection of over 13%.
Also in Cork, at the Mercy University Hospital the rate of infection was over 10%.
In Dublin, both the National Children's Hospital in Tallaght and St Vincent's University Hospital had hospital-acquired infection rates of over 8%.
Two general hospitals, St John's in Limerick and the private Galway Clinic, recorded no infections.
The HSE says it has established an expert group to ensure that over the next five years rates of MRSA will be cut by 30%.
