Visitors and patients asked to resume wearing facemasks
Patients, staff and visitors attending our hospitals or our community sites are being asked to wear face masks again in clinical areas (for example, on wards, in A&E and in outpatient areas), as cases of COVID-19 have risen significantly.
This will apply at all Trust hospitals and community healthcare locations with immediate effect.
Karen Bonner, Chief Nurse for the Trust said: “We’ve seen the number of cases go up again and it’s crucial we use the tools that we’ve all become so familiar with, to help prevent the spread of the virus. We’re therefore kindly asking all patients and visitors to wear a mask if they are able to and to clean their hands at every opportunity. This is to help protect our patients – especially our most vulnerable patients – visitors and healthcare staff.”
The Trust’s current policy on visiting arrangements remains unchanged.
In addition to wearing facemasks staff, patients, and visitors are asked to observe good hand hygiene and are encouraged to wash their hands frequently with soap and water and use the alcohol gel where provided.
We’re constantly monitoring the situation and will update responses as required to ensure the continued safety of all patients, visitors and staff.