Sickness bugcloses hospital

Lady Home Hospital stopped accepting new patients on Friday as the illness hit existing patients.

A spokesperson for NHS Lanarkshire said on Tuesday: “We currently have infection control procedures in place at Lady Home Hospital in response to an outbreak of norovirus.

“This includes regular cleaning and good hand hygiene.

“The hospital is currently closed to new admissions.”

He said that the outbreak started on December 14 and a total of 10 patients had shown symptoms since then.

By Tuesday, only two patients still had symptoms.

Norovirus can occur at any time of year although it tends to be more common during the winter months. It can easily spread amongst patients, staff and visitors.

NHS Lanarkshire highlighted it as a problem in its Winter Plan, because of the sudden restrictions it can bring on ward space.

It can cause sickness, fever and diarrhoea. It usually lasts for 24 to 48 hours, but is infectious for two days after the symptoms stop.

Jan Clarkson, NHS Lanarkshire’s Nurse Consultant – Healthcare Associated Infection, said: “Patients, visitors and staff can help us minimise the impact of norovirus.

“It is important that people do not visit hospital if they have symptoms of suspected norovirus and they should wait until they have been clear of symptoms for at least 48 hours as they may still be contagious.

“Patients and visitors can also help by maintaining good hygiene, especially regular hand washing before eating and after using the toilet as alcohol hand sanitisers are ineffective in removing norovirus from hands.

“However, it is important that patients and visitors continue to use sanitisers before entering and leaving wards as they are highly effective in preventing the spread of other infections.”