BOSSES at Weston General Hospital said work is continuing to ensure the hospital can accept new patients and reopen the A&E department as soon as possible.

Covid-19 re-testing of all inpatients has continued this week with no new cases identified in the hospital's non-Covid wards since the temporary measures taken by the hospital were introduced.

Weston General Hospital said this would indicate no in-hospital transmission of the infection and demonstrates that the actions being taken at the hospital are working and ensuring patients and staff remain as safe as possible.

An initial round of staff testing suggests that approximately 6 per cent of the staff group at the hospital as a whole are asymptomatic and infected and Weston General Hospital said it is currently in the process of repeat testing all its staff.

Any members of staff who have tested positive have self-isolated in line with national guidance.

Weston General saida rigorous testing programme is in place and careful planning is underway with the aim to reopen services at the earliest opportunity.

Robert Woolley, chief executive at University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust, said:“It’s encouraging that we continue to see no evidence of in-hospital transmission.

"This is a reflection of the hard work and commitment of our staff to tackle this situation and keep our patients and each other safe.

“We will continue to test patients and staff regularly, as part of the careful planning to ensure we can re-open services as soon as possible.

"This includes deep cleaning the hospital, and carefully working through how we open our doors to new patients whilst maintaining the safety of our patients and staff.

“We continue to work closely with our health and care partners in preparation for re-opening and arrangements remain in place for new patients to access treatment and care in other appropriate healthcare settings in the area should they need it.”