Dunedin Hospital has had a "positive weekend" in the fight against a norovirus outbreak, reporters were told at a teleconference yesterday.
One patient was admitted through the emergency department late last week with suspected norovirus, putting the total number of patients with the virus at 11, down from 18 last Tuesday, Otago District Health Board operations manager Megan Boivin said.
"In terms of norovirus, and patients with vomiting and diarrhoea, we had a very positive weekend," she said.
In total, 28 people were kept in isolation yesterday, and the 11 suspected norovirus cases were all patients, not staff, she said.
Almost 200 patients and staff at Dunedin and Wakari hospitals have been affected by the virus since the first outbreak was reported on August 4.
Dunedin Hospital's Ward 8 has been re-opened after it was hit by a second norovirus outbreak on Wednesday.
Today would be "business as usual" for the hospital, she said.
To prevent further outbreaks, wards had been thoroughly cleaned.
Patients to undergo elective surgery would be screened off-site, and outpatients who had come into contact with people suffering virus-like symptoms were asked to stay away from the hospital.
Hospital staff were now working towards rescheduling the more than 2300 patients requiring treatment, which might require the assistance of other clinics, she said.
"We didn't want to reschedule people if we felt we didn't have things under control."
While Wakari Hospital has been given the all-clear from the virus, reports from the community indicated large numbers of schools and rest-homes were struggling with suspected outbreaks of gastro enteritis.
"It is difficult . . . we have to treat it exactly the same."
