Noro Virus

When you read on these message boards and elsewhere, its the Noro Virus that Scares everyone into a frenzy, and rightly so. So the question I would like to ask of people, why is your personal hygiene so poor. I do know this does not apply to all but only a few.

We were on a RCI Cruise a few years back and it had a tiny outbreak which was contained, well did not affect the whole ship. All the Toilet doors (Restroom), were open, you were handed all you food and utensils, everything you would expect.

Yet as you followed people round, being impatient helping themselfs, using the Little Boys rooms and not washing their hands. I know I have to do my bit to prevent spoiling your Holiday, but some people do not care.

So I say to those people who do not care for others, Do your bit wash clean and do not put your gruby fingers anywhere I may be going.

Thank You Ladies & Gentlemen

PS how many will admit to not washing after PPPPPPPPPPPing. I guess NONE because they know. :D:D

There was an outbreak of noro on our cruise in January. Aside from one gross guy at the Windjammer who used his hand to guide a piece of cake onto the serving utensil, overall, people had good manners in the Windjammer.

I was really impressed with how clean the ship was, and I don't know how anyone can forget to wash their hands- there are announcements in the bathrooms! We saw waiters in the MDR wiping down menus, tons of crew members spraying railings, etc.

Luckily the outbreak was contained and by day 5, they said there were no new cases.

The buffet is the worse. I can't tell you how many times I see children actually pick things up with their dirty little fingers and then put it back to pick up something else. Another thing I hate, is when passengers pick items up and start eating it right over the buffet, as if they hadn't eaten in years. I never do get this.

I'll agree about the cleanliness of the ship- I think this is a known concern and big money suck for the cruise line ( late debarkations, deep cleanings etc all add up) So they take a preventative approach. I have found the ships to be sparkling; hand rails being wiped down constantly, baths tidy and clean, vigilant caution urged at buffets etc.

We just returned from WDW which keeps this reputation as being the happiest, cleanest place on the globe. Well, guess what? It was disgusting! Smeary handrails and doors, the toilets were filthy, paper on the floors, overflowing in the trash, toilets unflushed, doors handles and sinks smeary. No one monitoring buffets for spoon handles in the food etc. So despite having been on 4 cruises in the last year (with their reps for Noro); no Noro for anyone in the family, but my daughter got it at WDW and was up all night:eek:

I know that none of us like to see someone acting like a piggy, but those people are everywhere and could behave like that at your local school, shopping center, or even WDW:rolleyes:, and I will take my chances on a cruise where at least I know they are trying to stay ahead of it!

It never infects the entire ship but it does affect it. The "tiny" event you mentioned was enough for them to handle serving utensils and food is how they handle an outbreak, as well as more thorough cleanings. Seriously, what they consider an outbreak is usually no more than 3% of the entire ship, which is not that high a percentage of any group to be sick with something. I watch people at work not wash their hands all the time. It's not just ships, it's everywhere. Norovirus is much more common on land than on cruise ships because ships are kept so clean. There's no way for a cruise to be 100% healthy, but people can help themselves by washing their hands. It's not touching things that have the virus on them that's the problem, it's touching, then wiping their mouth or eyes with their hands, picking their noses, eating with their hands, etc, thus infecting themselves. We've been on 12 cruises and have never been sick (well DH caught a cold once). And, we wash our hands frequently.

PS how many will admit to not washing after PPPPPPPPPPPing. I guess NONE because they know. :D:D

It is an urban legend that the Noro Virus is spread by not washing hands after urinating. The Noro Virus is simply not located there. As a matter of fact, most people's urine is sterile. Assuming that you take a shower everyday, just standing at the urinal and holding your penis, you are not spreading any more germs than if you rubbed your hand on your underarm or other sweaty area of your body.

It can be spread by defecating and not washing hands though. Here is some real info on the subject...

My wife is an RN and retired infection control nurse and I am a Medic. We will be there with our little clip-on sanitizer bottles on our belt loop. It is amazing how many people don't effectively know how to wash their hands. Warm water free-flowing over hands, use soap for 30 seconds, rinse hands off, dry hands, and then use the paper towel to turn off the water. If you turn off the water with your' bare hands, you just contaminated yourself again. Use sanitizer after you touch money,ink pens,ATM,door handle, or shake hands with anyone. Clean your' hands after you leave the casino. Keep your' bare hands out of your' face. Small things are easily forgotten.

My wife is an RN and retired infection control nurse and I am a Medic. We will be there with our little clip-on sanitizer bottles on our belt loop. It is amazing how many people don't effectively know how to wash their hands. Warm water free-flowing over hands, use soap for 30 seconds, rinse hands off, dry hands, and then use the paper towel to turn off the water. If you turn off the water with your' bare hands, you just contaminated yourself again. Use sanitizer after you touch money,ink pens,ATM,door handle, or shake hands with anyone. Clean your' hands after you leave the casino. Keep your' bare hands out of your' face. Small things are easily forgotten.

Well, since those bottles are anti bacterial, Norovirus isn't effectively prevented by using them.

I just wash my hands and I never get sick. I watch all my co-workers and friends who constantly use the anti-bacterial gel get sick multiple times per year. I hate the antibacterial gel. And, oh, I do shake hands with people all the time. Anti bacterials in my view are so overused that people don't wash their hands and actually are exposed to more germs because of that.

When you read on these message boards and elsewhere, its the Noro Virus that Scares everyone into a frenzy, and rightly so. So the question I would like to ask of people, why is your personal hygiene so poor. I do know this does not apply to all but only a few.

 

We were on a RCI Cruise a few years back and it had a tiny outbreak which was contained, well did not affect the whole ship. All the Toilet doors (Restroom), were open, you were handed all you food and utensils, everything you would expect.

 

Yet as you followed people round, being impatient helping themselfs, using the Little Boys rooms and not washing their hands. I know I have to do my bit to prevent spoiling your Holiday, but some people do not care.

 

So I say to those people who do not care for others, Do your bit wash clean and do not put your gruby fingers anywhere I may be going.

 

Thank You Ladies & Gentlemen

PS how many will admit to not washing after PPPPPPPPPPPing. I guess NONE because they know. :D:D

I agree with you. I am one who no matter where I go always wash my hands before and after a meal or after using the restroom.

I turn on the water (warm) and put soap. Then I wash for 20-30 seconds and use the paper towel to turn off the faucet and open the door and throw the towel away. I follow the same guidelines as posted for the employees.

Whenever there is a hand sanitizer I use it automatically. I agree with you I hate it when people sneeze or have bad hygiene and I don't want to get sick from other people.

BTW When I sneeze I do it into the sleeve of my shirt. If I feel really sick I would order room service.

You can be totally disinfected, and still catch it. If someone vomits, and there are still particles in the air that you walk through...well, now you've got it!

Hand washing IS the 1st defense, but if a person doesn't have the noro germ, they won't give it to anyone else, even if they don't wash their hands!

My girlfriend was hospitalized last week with it....and she wasn't on a cruise or in contact with small kids, and she's not careless about hygiene.....probably picked it up at the grocery store or Walmart....someplace she goes on a regular basis. It's everywhere.

Here's one you don't think about. Who keeps their toothbrush in a glass or other recepticle on the sink in the bathroom? When you use the toilet and then flush, particles from the toilet have been shown to land on items up to 10 feet away. In a test, the toothbrush actually harbored more germs from the toilet than the lid of the toilet, simply because most people sanitize their toilet more often than they do their toothbrush.