Press release – February 22 2018

2018/011

Ross Community Hospital wards closed to visitors 

The wards at Ross Community Hospital have been closed to visitors due to cases of seasonal influenza, except on compassionate grounds.

As a preventative measure visiting to both wards at Ross Community Hospital has been stopped to prevent the further spread of seasonal flu which is affecting some patients.

Whilst its business as usual for outpatient services at the hospital, patients should only attend hospital appointments if they have been free from flu symptoms for 24 hours.  Please also remember to practice good hand hygiene and use the alcohol gels available in the hospital entry points in order to prevent any further spread of flu. 

Venkat Sivaprakasam, consultant microbiologist at Wye Valley NHS Trust, said:  “There continues to be cases of seasonal influenza across the country as expected for this time of year and this kind of outbreak often comes from within the community. Experience has shown that restricting visiting can lessen the chance of spread to both patients and visitors and other areas of the hospital. 

“If you cough or sneeze, follow the simple advice from the NHS which is to use a tissue to cover your mouth and nose, throw it away carefully after use, and wash your hands. 

“We would like to thank all patients and visitors for their understanding during this period and to emphasise that these restrictions are in place to protect our patients, as part of our zero tolerance approach to healthcare associated infections”. 

Ends 

Note to editors:

Wye Valley NHS Trust is a provider health services across Herefordshire and beyond.

The Trust exists to improve the wellbeing, independence and health of the people we serve. We are the leading provider of health care in Herefordshire.

By working closely with our partners, we can make good our promise to deliver a quality of care we would want for ourselves, our families and our friends.

With an estimated annual turnover of around £180 million, we employ around 2,700 plus staff. We aim to build new relationships between our staff, patients, service users and their carers with the wider community.

For further information please contact the Trust communication team on 01432 372928 or 01432 355444 ext 5105.