PATIENTS IN STROKE WARD HIT BY COVID Pupils to police

ANUMBER of patients within a stroke unit at a Glasgow hospital have t est e d p o s i t ive for Covid- 19. Health bosses have confirmed they are dealing with a “small” outbreak in Ward 36 in the Royal Infirmary, but have moved to reassure locals there is no wider threat to the public.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde ( NHSGGC) chiefs say they have taken steps to ensure the unit, which also cares for elderly patients, is safe, including enhanced cleaning and contact tracing.

It comes shortly after two staff members in the Health Records office were forced to quarantine after they tested positive for the virus.

An NHSGGC spokeswoman said: “We have a small number of positive cases of patients at Glasgow Royal Infirmary.

“We continue to care for these patients and wish them a quick recovery. We follow the highest standards of infection control in response to such situations, including the temporary closure of the ward to new admissions, regular enhanced cleaning and conducting contact tracing and isolation where appropriate.

“All of our staff continue to work extremely hard to treat our patients across healthcare settings and we are committed to upholding the highest standards of infection prevention and control and ensuring the latest guidance is followed within NHSGGC.”

Confirmation of the outbreak in the Royal Infirmary comes a day after Scotland recorded its highest daily rise in coronavirus deaths since mid- June.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the passing of seven people was a “very sharp reminder” of the danger of Covid- 19.

The latest fatalities increased the overall death toll under that measure to 2519.

Speaking at the coronavirus briefing, the First Minister said: “That figure of seven deaths is the highest I have had to report at one of these briefings since June 17.

“It is therefore a very sharp reminder that Covid is an extremely dangerous virus, as well as a highly infectious one.”

In NHSGGC, a further 232 cases were recorded overnight, taking the health board’s total to 9077.

Sturgeon added: “We, of course, should never think of these deaths as statistics, every single one of them represents the loss of a unique and irreplaceable individual.

“I want to send my deepest condolences to everyone who has lost a loved one, and that particularly includes those who have lost loved ones in the last few days.”

of face coverings on public transport whilst using our regular services to get to and from school over the last few weeks.

“The feedback from both drivers and local stakeholders was then investigated by our staff who carried out spot checks and confirmed an issue on a small number of services in the city.

“We have therefore taken the immediate action to contact all schools across our Greater Glasgow area network to plea for them to work in partnership with us to help stamp out this issue before it becomes any worse.”

He added most schools which had been contacted had tried to be helpful.

A Glasgow City Council spokeswoman said: “Our schools will continue to reinforce key Scottish Government advice and guidance to their pupils and the importance of following rules relating to face coverings both in schools and on school and public transport to help suppress the virus.”