But C. difficile infection is not restricted to those sites. The bug is affecting patients around the country.

Joan Ketchley, 84, developed C. difficile symptoms as she recovered from a stroke at Diana Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby.

Her family found the anti-contamination rules designed to prevent it spreading difficult to live with.

"My dad has always been affectionate with her and kept forgetting he couldn't kiss her goodbye," said son Paul. "It was really upsetting."

But Mr Ketchley believes restricting visitors is the only way to stop the bug spreading.

"We're healthy and our immune systems can deal with it. But sick people can't. People have to realise that it's not sensible to bring your kids, for example, into hospital."

David Stewart's father William almost died after contracting C. difficile at Lister Hospital in Stevenage last summer.

The 64 year old was being treated for a chest infection and ended up seriously ill for two months.

"His stomach lining was coming out on the bed," said his son.

David Stewart, of Ashwell, Herts, said the family visited his father every day and watched cleaners "push dirt around".

"There's no real effort or passion going into doing it properly."

In February, Pamela Rowles was being treated for gall stones and C.difficile at George Eliot Hospital, Nuneaton.

Her daughter Alannah was amazed at the hospital's response when an outbreak of the bug was identified.

"They put up signs saying 'Use Hand Gel'. But they'd already told us it didn't work. I couldn't understand why they didn't tell people to use hot water and soap."

Pamela later died from a tumour but because of the C. difficile, her family were only allowed to visit her for one hour a day.

"Her last few months with us would have been better spent at home and not in quarantine," said Alannah.

As if recovering from a liver transplant was not tough enough, Derek Timlett ended up coping with the effects of C.difficile as well.

"It was horrific," he said. "I was full of pipes and tubes and on top of that I had this awful illness."

Mr Timlett, of Chesterfield, said the staff at St James's Hospital, Leeds, "saved my life" after the transplant and reacted quickly to the C. difficile, pumping him full of antibiotics.

But the hospital - a centre of excellence - was in too old-fashioned a building.

"The beds were squashed together. No wonder infection spread."