WARDS at Poole Hospital are still closed to try and stop the spread of the winter vomiting bug noro-virus.

All but essential visits were banned on February 3 due to high levels of the bug in the community and a number of suspected cases at the hospital.

Visitors are only allowed onto wards if the nurse or midwife in charge says so.

Anyone planning to visit a patient at Poole Hospital should call the ward before doing so.

Outpatient clinics, day case and diagnostic services are unaffected.

But patients due for an appointment who have had, or been near someone, with diarrhoea or vomiting in the last three days should contact the hospital as soon as possible to discuss their appointment.

Denise Richards, matron for infection control at the hospital, said: “We continue to ask for the public’s support and understanding while these measures remain in place.

“I would like to stress that these visiting restrictions will last only as long as necessary