Visitor Restrictions Put Into Place At Children's Hospital To Curtail Spread Of Flu

DETROIT (WWJ) - Children's Hospital of Michigan will restrict visitors starting today to prevent their patients from catching the flu.

Children 12 and under will not be allowed to visit patients, even if they are their own siblings or relatives says Dr. Eric McGrath who deals with infectious disease.

"Anybody else -- Visitors age like 13 and over, if they have a fever, cough or rash, we would like them to visit at a different time," says McGrath. "So I believe this is a slightly better restriction than the years' past because I think we used to restrict from 18 and under -- so this is trying to still let 13 and overs still be able to visit -- as long as they are not having active symptoms."

McGrath says the restrictions will remain in place as long as there are a high number of local cases of the flu.

"For the last several years - they've always been put in place - when we get the word from the Michigan Department of Community Health and the CDC and see the flu has been spreading at the local level and that time is upon us now.

McGrath says hand sanitizers and educational posters have been placed around the hospital warning of a spread of the flu.