New strain of norovirus on the rise

[Conshydot]

http://vitals.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/24/16679855-winter-vomiting-alert-new-strain-of-norovirus-on-the-rise?lite

[JJPacer]

If everyone washed their hands the norovirus, new or old, wouldn't make people sick.

[jackdiamond]

Also, never shake hands and avoid crowds.

[shipshape sam]

On board or on shore, I try to avoid touching my mouth, nose and eyes without first washing my hands with soap and water.

[excitedofharpenden]

My mum's care home was closed for five weeks prior to Christmas and it has been closed again for a week. There are still visitors who insist on coming in to see their family members, much to the frustration of the staff.

 

Yes, regularly giving your hands a good wash with hot soapy water whilst reciting Happy Birthday in your head to ensure you spend enough time doing it is a good habit, along with resisting the habit of touching face etc. Sometimes no matter what you do you get it though.

 

Phil

[shipshape sam]

My mum's care home was closed for five weeks prior to Christmas and it has been closed again for a week. There are still visitors who insist on coming in to see their family members, much to the frustration of the staff.

 

Yes, regularly giving your hands a good wash with hot soapy water whilst reciting Happy Birthday in your head to ensure you spend enough time doing it is a good habit, along with resisting the habit of touching face etc. Sometimes no matter what you do you get it though.

 

Phil

 

That is true about no matter what you do, sometimes......

[cruzccl]

Just like last year the Noro flares up and begins to get more media coverage. Now I am hearing it on all my local news, etc.

 

Last year on Constellation we were delayed boarding so they could clean the ship as they had a large number of guests sick the prior cruise. We operated for 5 days at red level.

 

Have had noro before and not fun for the first 36 hours.

 

Bill

[HopefulCruiser123]

Okay.....I have the best idea for a patent. Cruise ship bathrooms that you have to insert your sea pass into and it will charge your sea pass $20 when you lift the toilet seat lid. If the bathroom door is opened without the soap dispenser being used, you forfeit the $20. If you use the soap dispenser, your sea pass receives a $20 credit. Also, when the soap dispenser is used, it automatically lowers the toilet seat lid.

 

Business partners anyone??

 

Business idea #2 -insurance to compensate passengers who had "urgent business" and couldn't locate the sea pass in a timely fashion.

[CaroleSS]

You are a genius! :D

[miched]

The chairs and condiments on the table are prime source for transmitting stuff. People could use the hand sanitizer but when they sit down at the table their hands grab the seat rails to pull the chair forward or back. People will handle food and lick their fingers and then pick up the salt shaker and etc.

 

Also seen people reusing glasses in the cafeteria, picking thru breads, muffins, bagels and the like with their fingers completely ignoring the tongs.

 

Was having breakfast in Blu and the server put the coffee carafe directly into my cup resting it against the rim. There was still coffee in the cup and the spout was in it. It was my last cup that morning. I notified the manager on the way out not identifying the worker just saying one of the servers and that he needed to instruct them to be more careful.

 

Who knows what is lurking on the drink menus.

 

Way too many ways to spread it around other than the rest rooms.

 

Problem is it doesn't start on the cruise ships. They are probably the cleanest place to be but they get all the bad publicity because of some careless and inconsiderate passengers.

 

 

.

[Benjo8]

Our daughter observed another sure fire way to transmit any illness while on our Baltic Cruise on Connie last summer. When you return to the ship some people hand their sea pass to the security officer to insert into the card reader. Then he hands it back and takes the card from the next passenger who hands it to him. Brilliant. Security officer -- keep your hands to yourself!

[CaroleSS]

Ultimately it is up to you as to whether you want to spend your cruise trying to isolate yourself from germs or just live life understanding the risks. You could get noro at home just as easily as on a cruise.....or you could get hit by a bus in the morning.

 

Germs are everywhere. We have immune systems for a reason. No one wants to get sick on a cruise, but if you are so germaphobic that you spend your entire cruise worrying or living in a bubble, maybe cruising isn't for you.

 

Flame away, but for my money, I'll wash my hands and enjoy my cruise!

[HopefulCruiser123]

 

 

Way too many ways to spread it around other than the rest rooms.

 

Problem is it doesn't start on the cruise ships.

 

 

.

 

The problem is, it STARTS in a restroom and then is spread to all those other places. Cruise ships are especially vulnerable to mass infection because you have so many passengers, in relatively close proximity, to all the places an infected person might touch. Yes a person could get infected on land and bring it aboard ship, but the idea of the public hand sanitizers is to inhibit the widespread contamination from room to room. You may not completely stop it, but it would certainly be a huge way to limit contamination.

 

My suggestion was sort of tongue in cheek because if it were that simple, I am sure the cruise lines would have thought of this long before I did.

[MizDemeanor]

People don't wash their hands with hot water and soap and sing Happy Birthday. They tinkle their fingers under a airport restroom faucet, if they do that at all to cleanse.

 

Best of Luck to all of us who cruise and want to stay Safe and Healthy.

[curly_whirly_tipz]

Unfortunately the hand sanitizers do not kill the noro bug (which is why they often stop people using them in hospitals when an outbreak is present as if an infected hand touches it they give it to everyone else trying to be safe). Soap and water is the best thing but noro can be airborne and therefore sometimes it's just one of those things...

[uktog]

Unfortunately the hand sanitizers do not kill the noro bug (which is why they often stop people using them in hospitals when an outbreak is present as if an infected hand touches it they give it to everyone else trying to be safe). Soap and water is the best thing but noro can be airborne and therefore sometimes it's just one of those things...

 

And given the standards onboard ship the initial source is more likely to be the plane you travel in to the cruise than the ship itself - look around a plane and think about what you touch there if you are germophobic

 

I will in the meantime keep on washing my hands and recognise I cannot reduce the risks entirely

[cedar41]

Unfortunately the hand sanitizers do not kill the noro bug (which is why they often stop people using them in hospitals when an outbreak is present as if an infected hand touches it they give it to everyone else trying to be safe). Soap and water is the best thing but noro can be airborne and therefore sometimes it's just one of those things...

[SIZE="3"]

Germstar kills the Noro Virus. That is what NCL uses.

 

http://www.germstar.com/us/[/size]