2 Jul 2014

Gastro bug closes Clyde hospital ward

6:43 pm on 2 July 2014

A hospital in Central Otago is experiencing an outbreak of a gastro bug that causes vomiting and diarrhoea.

Two patients and seven staff at Dunstan Hospital in Clyde are affected so far.

Infection Prevention and Control Practitioner Jill Hansen said on Wednesday that diarrhoea and vomiting can be highly contagious, so measures have been implemented to try and control its spread.

The ward is closed to all visitors, and rest homes and other health providers have been informed, she said.

The symptoms of vomiting and diarrhoea can last for between 24 and 36 hours. Hospital staff haven't yet figured out what virus has caused the infection.