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Patients confirmed to have been infected with coronavirus have been treated at a contagious disease facility in Cottingham.
Two patients were being looked after by a team of medics at the specialist unit inside Castle Hill Hospital before being transferred to Newcastle.
Sources told Hull Live that hospital staff were informed of the situation in an email sent by Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust chief executive Chris Long.
The email said: “You may be aware that two patients have tested positive for coronavirus and are currently being treated in Newcastle.
“I can confirm that they were brought to Castle Hill yesterday (Thursday).
“I would like to thank the staff who looked after the patients during their short stay with us. They showed great professionalism and duty of care at all times.
“They are well used to treating patients with infectious diseases and ensured that the correct procedures for dealing with Wuhan Novel Coronavirus were followed at all times.”
It is understood the patients were taken to Ward 7 – the £1.63m department created to deal with “complex infectious diseases” – on Thursday.
A man had reportedly fallen ill at a hotel in York which was cordoned off and paramedics wearing hazmat suits were seen in the area.
There are currently two confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and both patients are members of the same family.
The World Health Organisation has declared that coronavirus, which originated in China, is a “public health emergency”.
Health bosses raised the UK risk level from low to moderate.
At least 213 people in China have died from the new virus, mostly in Hubei, with almost 10,000 cases reported nationally.
The first diagnosis of the disease was in Wuhan and there have been now been 98 cases of the virus outside China, in 18 countries.
Across the UK, there have been 177 concluded tests, of which 175 were confirmed negative – with two positive.
(Image: Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)
A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said he could not confirm whether patients had been admitted to Castle Hill Hospital due to patient confidentiality.
However, he confirmed that there are two confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK and that both patients are now being treated in Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary.
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A statement from the department said the NHS has expert teams in every ambulance service and a number of specialist hospital units with highly trained staff and equipment ready to receive and care for patients with any highly infectious disease.
It said: “The NHS is always ready to provide world class care to patients whether they have a common illness, or an infectious disease never seen here before.
“We practise and prepare our response to disease outbreaks and follow tried and tested procedures, following the highest safety standards possible for the protection of NHS staff, patients and the public
“Specific guidance on handling the Wuhan coronavirus has been shared with NHS staff.
“If a member of the public has travelled from Wuhan to the UK in the past 14 days and reports flu-like symptoms to NHS 111 or their GP, they will be isolated where appropriate and dealt with accordingly based on clinical expertise.”
The infectious diseases ward opened at Castle Hill in May 2018, with 12 specialist rooms to treat patients with highly contagious viruses and drug-resistant infections such as multi-drug resistant tuberculosis (TB) and for the assessment of possible haemorrhagic illnesses such as Ebola, dengue and yellow fever.
Five rooms are “negative pressure” isolation facilities with lobbies and en-suite showers, including one designed to care for vulnerable adults. Special ventilation systems prevent contaminated air escaping to other parts of the ward.
One room is patients with Ebola or similar conditions who are awaiting transfer to specialist treatment centres in London or Newcastle.
The first room of its kind in the Humber region, the high-level isolation room has a dirty/clean route where staff are able to take personal protection equipment on and off – known as “donning” and “doffing”.
(Image: Hull University Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)
In a statement on Friday about the first two confirmed UK cases, Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty said: “The patients are receiving specialist NHS care, and we are using tried and tested infection control procedures to prevent further spread of the virus.
“The NHS is extremely well-prepared and used to managing infections, and we are already working rapidly to identify any contacts the patients had, to prevent further spread.
“We have been preparing for UK cases of novel coronavirus and we have robust infection control measures in place to respond immediately.
“We are continuing to work closely with the World Health Organisation and the international community as the outbreak in China develops to ensure we are ready for all eventualities.”
A total of 83 Britons and 27 non-UK nationals were evacuated from Wuhan, with the flight carrying them landing in England on Friday afternoon.
The people on board will now be quarantined for 14 days at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral.
