Visiting is being restricted at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill
it's due to concerns about the Omicron coronavirus variant
From today visiting is being restricted at Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill. It's due to concerns about the Omicron coronavirus variant.
The Trust says only in exceptional cases will people be allowed to visit if pre agreed with senior nursing staff.
Such as patients at the end of their lives and patients with dementia and learning difficulties.
Birthing partners will be able to attend when a woman is in labour, to visit antenatal and postnatal wards and to attend antenatal appointments such as scans. One parent will be able to visit children in our paediatric wards and both parents as co-care givers on the neonatal intensive care unit.
All other visiting will be halted from today (Wednesday). All visitors who are given permission to attend must take a lateral flow test (LFT) before attending and confirm they have done so when attending the ward. A LFT should be taken before every such visit.
Chief Nurse Beverley Geary said:
“Our duty must be to the patients in our care and we must do everything we can to protect them from the threat of Covid-19.
“We know the vast majority of the public understand that our patients are already vulnerable and catching the virus could have very serious – and indeed deadly – consequences for them.
“We are not introducing this step lightly. We know it distresses relatives and the patients themselves when they can’t have visitors.
“But we must do everything we can to stop the spread of Covid-19 and to address the risk of this specific variant until the world understands more about the danger it poses.
“We thank the public in advance for their understanding and reassure them that restrictions on visiting will be eased as soon as we are sure our patients will be safe.”
In response to the Government’s tightening of restrictions, face masks must be worn by all staff, visitors and patients on hospital grounds as well as when they enter any hospital building.
All members of the public should stay away from hospital if they are showing any symptoms of Covid-19.