WORCESTER’S hospital would be built differently if NHS bosses had to start from scratch so that staff could better contain the spread of bugs such as norovirus.

At the height of the third outbreak this winter of norovirus, which causes diarrhoea and vomiting, 351 beds were blocked to admissions at Worcestershire Royal Hospital.

Hospital bosses have revealed that the hospital, opened 10 years ago last month, would have been designed and built differently if they had the chance to start from scratch.

There were two outbreaks of norovirus between December 20 and February 10 and a third on February 11.

Trust bosses were forced to declare a major incident at the Worcester hospital during the third outbreak and at its height 116 patients and 40 members of staff were believed to have contracted the bug and 18 wards were affected.

Penny Venables, chief executive of Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, said at its meeting that the debrief and review of the trust’s handling of the outbreak had yet to be completed and was waiting on more clinical data.

She said: “We have more side rooms than an old Victorian hospital but if we were building a hospital today we would have more isolation rooms and more side rooms.

“We will do a complete review once we have the final laboratory information.”

The hospital trust opened more beds to help manage the outbreak but had difficulties staffing them because the outbreak fell during half-term week.

Findings so far indicate no evidence of common exposure to the bug, no incidents of staff working with patients while symptomatic, no link with catering (food for patients) but say the design of the building (the Worcester hospital) and capacity problems were contributory factors.

The trust’s review has found that a declaration of a major incident was appropriate and showed strong working relationships between the acute hospitals trust and other parts of the health and social care sector.