'Coronavirus pods' to be installed at Harrogate hospital

The Chief Operating Officer at Harrogate and Distrct NHS Foundation Trust, Robert Harrison, confirmed this morning: “Following national guidance all hospitals are putting in place NHS 111 pods at their emergency departments, so that anyone attending hospital with symptoms of the virus can be kept isolated from other patients and avoid causing unnecessary pressure in A&E.

“Over the coming weeks many more of us may need to self-isolate at home for a period to reduce this virus's spread. Everyone can continue to play their part by taking simple steps such as washing hands to prevent the spread of infection and calling NHS 111 first before going to the doctors or A&E if they have any concerns about or show symptoms of coronavirus.”

Advice from the NHS:

- If you have travelled from Wuhan or Hubei Province to the UK in the last 14 days you should immediately stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu.

- Call the NHS 111 on to inform them of your recent travel to the area, and please follow this advice even if you do not have symptoms of the virus.

- This advice applies to travellers who have returned to the UK from the following areas: China, Thailand, Japan, Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, and Macau.

- If you have returned to the UK from any of these areas in the last 14 days and develop symptoms of cough or fever or shortness of breath, you should immediately stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu and call NHS 111 to inform them of your recent travel to the country.

- Patients are safe to be discharged from isolation once they have had two negative respiratory tests for the coronavirus, 24 hours apart – this means they are no longer infectious and pose no risk to the public.​