Visiting restrictions after outbreak of norovirus at L&D

Visiting for inpatients will be restricted to one next of kin or one named friend.

Norovirus, sometimes called winter vomiting disease, causes vomiting and/or diarrhoea. It is highly contagious and exists outside the hospital as well as inside the hospital. There is no treatment for Norovirus – the symptoms subside over two or three days.

But, the Norovirus can be prevented by good personal hygiene including washing hands thoroughly with hot soapy water (rather than alcohol gel).

L&D’s chief nurse Marion Collict, said: “We are restricting visiting on the wards affected which is standard practice in these kind of situations. It’s too early to speculate how the Norovirus entered the L&D Hospital.

“Our priority is to ensure that patients who have the Norovirus are made as comfortable as possible and to contain the infection to prevent it spreading to other patients. Visiting is restricted to next of kin on all hospital wards except where a patient is critically ill e.g. in the Intensive Care Unit.”

The hospital is reassuring patients who are due to come in to hospital for outpatient appointments or planned surgical operations that there have been no recent cases of Norovirus in outpatient clinics or the operating theatres.

If members of the public think they may have winter vomiting disease please do not come to A&E since there is no treatment for this virus; it needs to run it course over two or three days. The best advice is stay indoors, isolate yourself from other people and drink lots of water to keep rehydrated. If you need further advice please call NHS Direct 0845 4647.