 Four wards at the hospital have been affected |
About 30 patients at a hospital in Greater Manchester are suffering from the winter vomiting virus. Four wards at Fairfield Hospital, in Bury, have been hit by the outbreak of norovirus, which also causes diarrhoea.
Staff hope the bug will clear up in the next week but are asking anyone with a stomach bug to avoid the hospital to cut the chances of it spreading.
Other outbreaks of the virus have been reported at schools, nursing homes and hospitals across the UK.
 |  The really important message is that anyone with a tummy bug should avoid a social visit to any ward at the hospital |
Fairfield Hospital managers said restrictions were in place on wards six, 18, 19, and 21 with only relatives permitted to visit.
Louise Dickinson, nurse consultant in infection control for Pennine Acute Trust, issued the warning to relatives on Friday.
She said: "No-one wants to see patients miss out on visits from families or friends but, in the meantime, these restrictions help us focus on tackling the problem and stop it spreading.
"The really important message is that anyone with a tummy bug should avoid a social visit to any ward at the hospital.
"We would say that at any time, but it's particularly important when we're tackling these current cases."
Daily meetings are being held between the hospital's infection control nurses, ward staff and bed managers to assess the situation.
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