East Surrey Hospital alert over vomit bug outbreak

An outbreak of the winter vomiting bug at East Surrey Hospital has led to warnings to visitors to keep away if they have symptoms.

Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust said eight wards had been affected by the bug at the hospital in Redhill.

A spokeswoman said the wards were still open and the number of patients affected was changing all the time.

She said people with norovirus should only attend A&E if they have been advised to by a doctor.

Medical director Des Holden said winter was "well and truly here" with the arrival of the bug which was prevalent in the community at the moment.

He said: "The winter vomiting and diarrhoea bug causes serious disruption in hospitals at this time of year, and it is often brought in by someone who comes into hospital as a visitor while they are still carrying a bug."

People with diarrhoea or vomiting should not visit friends or family for at least 48 hours after symptoms have stopped, he said.

The hospital serves a population of 420,000 people across east Surrey and north-east West Sussex.