NHS Fife eases Covid rules to let two people visit hospital patients

Patients in Fife hospitals can now have two visitors as Covid rules ease.

NHS Fife had previously limited visitors to one per patient in the wake of the pandemic.

Health board chiefs say it is possible as there are fewer infected patients.

Two-metre distancing is still in place so a limit of one person will still be enforced where this cannot be accommodated.

In such cases patients can have two visitors but at different times.

Essential visiting will continue in wards or areas where people are being treated for Covid, this includes visits to relatives receiving end of life care and supporting those with mental health issues, learning disability autism or dementia.

In children, neonatal and maternity wards, any child visitors must be a sibling.

Janette Owens, NHS Fife’s director of nursing, said: “Visits from loved ones are really beneficial for patients’ recovery and we’re committed to making visiting as safe, open and accessible as possible.

“The fact that we are seeing fewer clusters in our hospitals has been greatly helped by visitors adhering to the measures in place on the use face coverings and hand washing, and we’re very pleased to be in a position where we can ease visiting restrictions once more.”

Visitors are asked to regularly apply hand sanitiser, wear a surgical face mask and test for Covid beforehand, kits are free to hospital visitors. Gifts like flowers, food parcels or balloons are not permitted.

Anyone who has recently been sick, had diarrhoea, or cold and flu symptoms should not visit even if they test negative for Covid.

The rules have changed due to the fall in infections.