Manx Care brings back social distancing and mask-wearing

There are currently 1,734 active cases on the island, with nine people in hospital

Social distancing and a requirement to wear face masks has been reintroduced across all health and social care settings on the Isle of Man.

Covid cases have surged on the island, with about 1,650 new infections in the last seven days.

Manx Care previously brought only back the measures at three sites in order to limit staff shortages due to isolation.

The health provider said the Covid spike was "impacting the workforce and operational delivery".

There are currently 1,734 active cases on the island, and nine patients in hospital.

Remaining day procedures at Noble's Hospital scheduled for this week have been cancelled.

Elective admissions planned for next week will also be reviewed daily, a Manx Care spokeswoman said.

The cancellations would ensure staff were "free to work in other areas including the Covid ward", which was reopened last week, she added.

A dedicated Covid ward at Noble's Hospital was reopened last week

The changes will also see Ward 4, which provides care for women with gynaecological, breast and pregnancy-related problems up to 20 weeks gestation, closed to inpatients.

However, all women's health outpatient appointments are set to continue.

An initiative to clear a backlog in those waiting for cataract surgery would not be affected by the latest measures, the spokeswoman confirmed.

Chief executive Teresa Cope said staff were having to "work in difficult circumstances in different areas to their normal place of work as we adapt and monitor the impact of Covid".

She said: "We are asking the public to work with us as we implement measures to keep our services running while maintaining the safety of staff and patients.

"We are aware there have been long waits in Noble's Hospital emergency department and apologise for this."