Ward remains closed after norovirus outbreak

A ward at Tokoroa Hospital remains closed with three patients and 10 staff members showing symptoms of norovirus.

Tokoroa Hospital manager Joanne Knight said people should stay away from the hospital unless it was an emergency.

She said people should phone their GP to avoid unnecessary contact with others

Yesterday, 20 people at the hospital - 10 staff members and 10 patients - had contracted the virus.

Hospital patients have been isolated, either in single rooms or in multi-bed rooms with contact isolation precautions.

Affected staff have been told to stay at home until they have been symptom free for at least 48 hours.

"It is highly contagious and the last thing our patients need is to be exposed to any (other) illnesses," Ms Knight said.

Symptoms of the virus include nausea, stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhoea, fever, muscle aches, and headache.

The illness is usually brief but violent with symptoms lasting one to two days.

Norovirus passes from hand-to-mouth through direct contact with another sick person and through eating contaminated food or touching surfaces and objects, (such as telephones or door handles) contaminated with the virus.

It has an incubation period of between 24 and 28 hours.