An Australian Institute of Health and Welfare report on staphylococcus aureus infections in public hospitals found 30 cases in Canberra with an infection rate of 0.84 cases per 10,000 patient days in 2014-15.

Across Australia both infection rates and the number of cases had fallen and were below the national benchmark of two cases per 10,000 patient days in all states and territories.

NSW and Western Australia had the next highest rates of the infection, also known as golden staph, with infection rates of 0.78 cases per 10,000 patient days.

A spokesman said ACT Health had successfully worked to drive down its staph infection rates from 1.3 cases per 10,000 days of patient care in 2012-13.

"It is important to note the results achieved by the ACT were impacted by smaller number of hospitals in the ACT compared with other states.

"It is also worth noting the Canberra Hospital is the major trauma hospital for the ACT and surrounding NSW region."

Golden staph is a serious bloodstream infection caused by bacteria often found on the skin, such as the hands of healthcare workers, and is often considered to be preventable.

The infections are often linked to hospital care and hospitals try to have as few cases as possible.

The report found the number of golden staph cases reported in Australian public hospitals had fallen 21 per cent, from 1,876 to 1,490 cases, since 2010-11.

The national rate of infections dropped from 1.10 cases to 0.77 cases per 10,000 days of patient care in the same period.

AIHW spokeswoman Jenny Hargreaves said rates were higher than the national average in principal referral hospitals, or hospitals that offered a very broad range of services, treated a large volume of patients and often had specialised units.

About 78 per cent of cases were treated with common antibiotics, while 22 per cent were antibiotic-resistant, the report said.

"The number of cases that were antibiotic resistant fell between 2010-11 and 2014-15 from 505 to 331 cases," Ms Hargreaves said.

The most recent ACT results followed a National Health Performance Authority report in April found the number of potentially deadly golden staph infections at Canberra Hospital almost halved in 2014.

That research found 21 golden staph cases in the Canberra Hospital during 2013-14, with an infection rate of 1.05 cases per 10,000 patient days.

Data from 2013-14 revealed 41 recorded cases and one of the highest infection rates of any major hospital in the country.

The ACT Health spokesman said infection control officers continued to work on programs and processes to limit the transfer of infections in public hospitals.

"This includes providing communication and education programs for clinicians, patients, general staff and visitors.

"In addition, both ACT public hospitals maintain processes to minimise hospital-acquired infections during hospital stays."

The spokesman said a recent report from the National Health Performance Authority on hand hygiene compliance showed both ACT public hospitals performed better than many hospitals of a similar size across the nation.

Figures from June this year showed Canberra Hospital had an 81.5 per cent compliance rate, which was an improvement on the 2011 rate of 64.8 per cent compliance.