VISITORS and patients attending appointments at St Mary's Hospital must wear a face covering at all times.

In line with Government guidance, all members of the public needing to visit NHS sites now need to wear face coverings. All staff are also now wearing them.

Meanwhile, hospital appointments must be attended unaccompanied, including for a blood test (unless the patient is a child, or is unable to attend without).

Do not attend if you or anyone in your household has experienced symptoms of coronavirus in the last 14 days.

The Isle of Wight's hospital says visiting restrictions remain in place – people wanting to visit patients should phone the ward area in advance.

Alice Webster, Nursing Director at Isle of Wight NHS Trust, said: “We would like to thank our community for their continued support and to reassure them that we are taking every step to ensure that our healthcare facilities are safe for everyone and wearing face coverings to appointments is an additional measure that will help.

“All staff [will be] wearing face masks, not just those working in clinical areas.

“We are also asking people to arrive at the time of their appointment, and not before and to come unaccompanied unless a chaperone is required. These measures will really help us to safely maintain social distancing.”

A face covering can be anything from a fancy fabric mask, to a quirky homemade creation made from a shirt or a sock to simply a scarf; as long as it covers the nose and mouth and you are able to breathe comfortably, says the Isle of Wight NHS Trust.