Hospital sure outbreak in neonatal unit contained

Experts are confident a bacteria strain that has killed three babies at Wellington Hospital's neonatal unit has been contained.

"It's looking very positive for us," said hospital microbiologist Mark Jones.

He said the hospital believed all carriers of the bacteria - babies and nurses from the unit - would be decontaminated by the end of this month.

"There are minor day-to-day variations in activity."

Dr Jones said 11 babies were in the neonatal unit's "red zone", where infected babies were isolated.

But at least one of those had been moved there in the past two days for better treatment from the "orange zone", which contained babies who might have had contact with the bug, he said.

Babies admitted after last Wednesday were in a "green zone".

Three dozen babies and 16 nurses from the unit have been infected by the bug since January and six nurses remain off work.

But Dr Jones said the outbreak appeared to have stabilised.

"Nothing has set us back over the last couple of days. It's all been very positive.

"We're beginning to feel good about it at last, that we've got things on track."

None of the babies who had tested positive for the bug were showing ill-effects from it, he said.

"All of these babies are responding well to treatment."

- NZPA