Ward locked down after coronavirus outbreak in Borders General Hospital

NHS Borders said Ward Seven at the hospital, in Melrose, is now closed to admissions after eight confirmed cases of the virus were identified among patients.

A small number of staff members are also currently symptomatic and awaiting test results.

NHS Borders said a Test and Protect team are in the process of tracing contacts, adding that all non-essential visits to the ward have been suspended.

Dr Ed James, Consultant Microbiologist, said: “A multidisciplinary team has been established to oversee the management of this outbreak and the situation will continue to be reviewed and monitored very closely.”

Despite the outbreak, the Scottish Borders region, which is currently in Level Two of the Government’s lockdown system, is due to be moved into Level One from Friday, December 11, at 6pm.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.