Sheffield Children's hospital families isolate before op

Sheffield Children's Hospital has asked families of children due to undergo elective surgery to isolate for 14 days before their child's operation.

The move is to ensure the patient is Covid-19 free when they enter the ward.

The hospital has restarted less-urgent surgery after a three-month pause due to coronavirus. The hospital had continued to do emergency surgery.

Jeff Perring, the hospital's medical director said things would "feel quite different for families".

A 13-day-old baby who was admitted in a critical condition died with Covid-19 at the hospital on Monday, NHS England said.

New processes introduced at the hospital include more cleaning, the use of more protective equipment, social distancing in waiting rooms and bed bays, the hospital said.

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Patient numbers would gradually increase over the coming weeks, the hospital said

Each child would be tested for the virus two or three days before their admission, said Mr Perring.

Testing would take place at the Sheffield Children's drive-through testing hub or a clinic.

​The 14-day isolation is to help patients avoid catching COVID-19, protect other patients in the hospital and also avoid any impact for the child during surgery and recovery, the hospital added.

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