General Ward at Dargaville Hospital is Temporarily Closed to Visitors
Service manager Jen Thomas says as soon as there were patients testing positive in the ward, it was closed to visitors and the plan to manage the outbreak was initiated.
This included infection prevention control measures and informing the whānau of patients of what was happening.
Measures such as temporarily closing wards are put in place when there is a spike of a contagious virus/infection within a localised area.
Other examples where this action has been taken in recent years include norovirus or influenza outbreaks.
There is significant community spread of COVID-19 in Northland with over 220 new cases being reported each day this week.
- There have been 247 new cases of COVID-19 notified in Northland in the 24 hours to 6am today, Tuesday 19 July.
- These include 136 cases in Whangārei District, 80 cases in Far North District, 31 cases in Kaipara District.
- There are 1,500 active cases in Northland currently.
- 44,050 people have recovered from COVID-19 in Northland.
- There are 14 cases currently in hospital.
"This reminds us that COVID-19 remains an issue in our community, and people should remain vigilant. Wear masks, stay two metres away from people you don't know, wash your hands frequently, stay home if you're sick, get tested, and get your full course of COVID-19 immunisations."
"While most people who are healthy and vaccinated will have a milder illness, COVID-19 is potentially more dangerous for people who are unwell and already in hospital."
All other parts of the hospital remain open to visitors.
A patient may nominate up to two people who can visit them during their stay in hospital. Two nominated people can visit each day, at separate times of the day.
Everyone is asked to not visit a Northland hospital if they are unwell, and all visitors must wear a mask throughout their visit.
The visitor policy for the general ward will be reviewed on Thursday 21 July.
For more information about COVID-19 vaccination or testing go to our website. https://www.northlanddhb.org.nz/(external link)
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