Visiting curbs as superbug cases rise

A rise in cases of a superbug at a seaside town hospital is leading to the number of visitors being restricted while deep cleaning is carried out.

Scarborough and North East Yorkshire NHS Trust has introduced a number of proactive infection control measures to tackle the C Difficile infection, including opening an isolation ward and cancelling some routine operations.

Now changes have been made to visiting hours at Scarborough Hospital in order to protect visitors and to allow for cleaning to take place.

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Friends and relatives are being asked to play their part by adhering to these new visiting times – 3 till 4pm and 6.30 until 7.30pm – and by limiting the number of visitors to two.

The isolation ward has now been set up on PPU and Holly Ward for patients with C Difficile.

In order to protect friends and family and to contain the spread of the infection, visitors to the ward will be limited to one person and no children will be allowed onto the ward.

Beech Ward was expected to reopen at the weekend following a programme of deep cleaning.

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Dianne Swiers, Deputy Chief Nurse, said: "I would like to take this opportunity to thank staff for their continued hard work and dedication during this time.

"Many staff have worked additional hours to ensure thatthese changes could take place with minimum disruption and staff have been understanding in moving to other wards in order to ensure that we can continue to deliver the best possible care to our patients.

"Patient safety remains our first priority and we are continuing to work closely with the Health Protection Agency.

"We would ask visitors to play their part by adhering to the new visiting times which have been put in place in order to protect their safety."

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