Hospitals cut visits in bid to curb flu virus

Visiting restrictions remain in place at three large hospitals today as efforts continue to contain the latest surge in influenza cases.

The limits on visitors were introduced on Friday at St James’s Hospital in Dublin and Mercy University Hospital (MUH) in Cork, and at Cork University Hospital on Saturday evening.

The first month of 2015 saw over 300 cases of influenza reported nationally, with the 142 cases in the last week of January alone higher than for all of January 2014.

All visits were prohibited to St James’s across the weekend following an outbreak of the virus, where there have been 21 confirmed cases. Only children’s wards and critically-ill patients were allowed visitors at the two Cork hospitals.

St James’s last night urged the public to continue to co-operate with ward-visiting restrictions, but said out-patient, day ward and diagnostic services will operate as normal today. However, there have been knock-on effects on some of the hospital’s services to try to curtail the spread of influenza.

“Planned admissions are severely curtailed, to allow for a small volume of time-critical admissions. The intensive care unit remains closed to all planned surgical cases,” a spokesperson said.

MUH has restricted visiting because of the level of flu coming in from the community, and this is the first time restrictions have been put in place because of flu at the hospital.

“The hospital wishes to thank the public for their co-operation with the restrictions. We want to contain and treat our patients suffering from influenza and not escalate the situation,” a spokesperson said.

At CUH, where the intensive care unit has also remained open to visitors, management said an increase in the number of patients presenting with flu-like symptoms led to the restrictions.

“This is in the interest of patient care and in order to curb the spread of the flu within the hospital,” a HSE spokesperson said.

Most influenza cases this year are in patients aged 55 or older, and female patients outnumbered males by almost two-to-one in the four weeks to January 25, according to the HSE’s Health Protection Surveillance Centre. Half the total cases in the first four weeks of the year were in the HSE’s eastern and mid-west regional areas.

Anyone with flu-like symptoms is advised to avoid visiting any healthcare facility, and to first make contact with their GP for advice.

“Most people who develop flu-like symptoms, unless they are in an at-risk group, can get better at home. Anyone who gets flu should stay at home, rest, drink plenty of fluids and use over-the-counter remedies like paracetomol to ease symptoms,” the HSE said.

A free influenza vaccine remains available to those at risk, including people aged 65 or over, those with chronic illness, with lower immunity, pregnant women, and residents of homes for older people. The 2014-15 influenza season is more severe partly because high numbers of cases have been of a strain not included in the vaccine administered in the northern hemisphere, but the HPSC says vaccination remains the most effective means of preventing infection from flu viruses.