NOROVIRUS SEASON...Tis The Season Not To Be Jolly.....

[ESLO]

Hi All,

 

Well woke up this morning and was getting cleaned up when on the local NYC radio I heard a story that the Carnival Liberty enroute from Italy to FLL reported approx 700 people (crew and passengers) out of 1166 onboard feeling the effects of Gastrointestinal Illness (Norovirus) during this cruise.

 

Checking the Cruisejunkie board, this actual report started on the 13th and has escalated over the period of time. Their ship will be delayed from leaving on the next cruise by 2 days so to clean the ship from top to bottom.

 

Please all those dedicated Cruise Critic's onboard all those HAL ships, pass the word around to all the other passengers to use that PRELL! Better to be safe than sorry. I know that HAL ships also are sometimes affected by this nasty illness that distrubs the fun of a cruise.

 

I know that when I was on the Oct 14th Noordam cruise, I PRELL'ed myself at every opportunity I had that was available in any part of the ship to prevent any unfortuate contact to be made. I was also happy to see many others also using these automatic machines, so easy - no work on our part.

 

Why bring that kind of Souvenir Home With You!

[sail7seas]

Thanks for the reminder to use the hand sanitizers and to alert to wash often. NLV appears in every nursing home, school, dormitory, hotel, hospital etc etc etc .....and, yes, on cruiseships. I'm not aware there is a specific season for it. I think it appears any time/place where people are not diligent about washing their hands. Ships certainly have outbreaks of it during the summer Alaska cruise season. It seems to spread so easily on ships because of the confined, close space circumstance.

 

[Desdemona01]

One of the casino ships near us had a Norwalk outbreak a few weeks ago which then spread to many people in the surrounding area. In a bit of irony, a multi-day symposium on the possible bird flu pandemic that was scheduled in one of their conference rooms had to be canceled due the Norwalk outbreak. As Sail7Seas posted, it can happen anywere people are in close quarters.

[ESLO]

Thanks for the reminder to use the hand sanitizers and to alert to wash often. NLV appears in every nursing home, school, dormitory, hotel, hospital etc etc etc .....and, yes, on cruiseships. I'm not aware there is a specific season for it. I think it appears any time/place where people are not diligent about washing their hands. Ships certainly have outbreaks of it during the summer Alaska cruise season. It seems to spread so easily on ships because of the confined, close space circumstance.

 

After monitoring the boards for many years, sorry say that there seems to be a trend on cruiseships. Also working in the healthcare system also see a season.

 

Late December to the Spring, there are numerous reports on cruiseships of Norovirus outbreaks that seem to also be associated with the Flu Season. Later on you will see a decline when entering the Spring.

 

Yes, this bug knows NO Boundaries!

[LolaWiz]

Thank you for reminding us.

I also wanted to add that it helps me no matter if i am at a resort or ship that i bring clorox wipes and clean down the handles, remotes, phones in my cabin.

I also wash the glasses with hot soapy water upon arrival. Some may say i am a freak, but i know that some things are not as clean (or cleaned) as they should be.

Also, i try not to touch the rails/railings if at all possible too!

 

Just wanted to offer some other tips. :)

[Oceanwench]

Um ... Prell is shampoo. :p

 

I think you mean Purell, the hand sanitizer.

 

We were aboard the Westerdam last November when there was an outbreak. I washed my hands often, did not use the public restrooms if I could avoid doing so, did not touch handrails ... And I was fortunate not to be one of the victims of the illness.

 

While it may seem that this is a problem just for cruise ships, that is not the case -- as others have noted above.

It's just that it's more visible when it hits a cruise ship -- which has a contained population.

If it were to hit a school, you really wouldn't notice as much, as kids come an dgo and are absent for a variety of reasons.

[cruisecache&squash]

If it were to hit a school, you really wouldn't notice as much, as kids come an dgo and are absent for a variety of reasons.

 

Not necessarily-check this out. A local elementary school was sick with it! :eek:

 

Officials say norovirus caused illnesses at Beach school

story at link: http://content.hamptonroads.com/story.cfm?story=112486&ran=12216

[Krazy Kruizers]

Heard about this morning as well.

 

There were lots of hand sanitizers all around the Volendam -- but very people used them.

 

I bring my own bottle to keep in the bathroom and I carry a small one in our back pack whenever we leave the ship.

[Chivalrygirl]

We were held back from boarding the Statendam on the 22 Sept. as the ship was being sanitized due to an outbreak on the previous voyage. After having flown up from NZ my husband and I were staggered when we were offered a piece of paper offering us a full refund if we chose not to sail. We were very impressed by the effort put into this problem from the Captain and ships compliment. The Captain spent the next three days regularly asking the pax to wash their hands, wash their hands, wash their hands. No shaking of hands, no touching of food by pax, no salt and pepper shakers etc. this of course slowed down lines but after three days the restrictions were taken off and things went back to normal. Having had this dreadful thing last Xmas (caught from my fathers rest home), I thought I was going to die, I take this very seriously now. Well done Captain Bos and crew, it was a very impressive exersise and the horrid thing did not occur on the Statendam in the next almost five weeks.

[jhannah]

Absolutely take every reasonable precaution you can. The main thing, it appears, is to not put your fingers in your mouth or rub your eye (anything like that) after you've touched anything until you cleanse your hands.

 

One other suggestion: always use a knuckle to press elevator buttons, instead of your fingertip.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

......

 

....One other suggestion: always use a knuckle to press elevator buttons, instead of your fingertip.

 

....Or an elbow! We multi-tasking beasts of burden, otherwise known as mothers, are "elbow experts":)

 

Karin

[ESLO]

Heard about this morning as well.

There were lots of hand sanitizers all around the Volendam -- but very people used them.

I bring my own bottle to keep in the bathroom and I carry a small one in our back pack whenever we leave the ship.

 

Yes, I do agree with you. We did have our own supply before boarding for when away from the machines or the ship.

 

Working in a Medical Center/Trauma Center, we have also our own individual bottles in our pockets for as needed use since the machines are usually only in the medical related area's of the building, not lobbies as examples.

 

We love cruising and meeting new people especially CRUISE CRITICS, but we all also may have something to pass on to each other & other passengers onboard.

 

Keeping ourselves safe will help keep others safe too!

[ESLO]

Um ... I think you mean Purell, the hand sanitizer.

 

Sorry, missed by one (1) (u) letter "Prell - Purell".

[traveller123]

If you can, you may want to carry a little bottle of hand sanitizer in your purse or pocket to use right before you eat. Even though you have used the sanitizer as you enter the Lido, etc., you may then touch a tray, the arms of your chair while you pull it in, etc. Thinking back, I'm pretty sure that's were I caught it. I didn't use the hand sanitizer again after I sat down and then made the mistake of eating a sandwich with my hands. And, of course, I ate the crust of the sandwich that I had been holding and I bet that's were the virus was hiding. I lost 48 hours of my vacation.... and I was incredibly careful about not touching things, wearing gloves in public areas, etc.

[NoNoNanette]

Absolutely take every reasonable precaution you can. The main thing, it appears, is to not put your fingers in your mouth or rub your eye (anything like that) after you've touched anything until you cleanse your hands.

 

One other suggestion: always use a knuckle to press elevator buttons, instead of your fingertip.

 

Also....if you prefer to use the stairs for exercise (rather than an elevator) as we do.... DON'T touch the hand-railing. :)

[Chivalrygirl]

Absolutely take every reasonable precaution you can. The main thing, it appears, is to not put your fingers in your mouth or rub your eye (anything like that) after you've touched anything until you cleanse your hands.

 

One other suggestion: always use a knuckle to press elevator buttons, instead of your fingertip.

 

Yeah but I got a bad habit of putting my foot in my mouth also, how will I get around that one?

[cruznon]

I always carry a tiny bottle of Purell to use after handling chairs and menus in dining room. After our Code Red experience on the Statendam in Alaska, Purell is in my purse ALL the time--even on land!!

[ESLO]

I always carry a tiny bottle of Purell to use after handling chairs and menus in dining room. After our Code Red experience on the Statendam in Alaska, Purell is in my purse ALL the time--even on land!!

 

Right On cruznon!

 

One thing I am sorry that we are unable to refill our containers thru the ship machines. Would not be a bad idea to help maintain our supply to prevent outbreaks as do happen. I know that they are not offered in the onboard shops. But I think there are enough machines thoughout the ship as it is.

 

I know that when we approached the restaurant or the Lido, some people would follow the leader and use the machine and others will just head for the restaurant doors most likely either hungry or follow the smell of the food.

 

We wish everyone a health cruise experience.

[legalslave]

There was an outbreak of Norovirus in Omaha this month. It can happen anywhere. I can guarantee you there are no oceanliners anywhere near Omaha, NE. It spreads so rapidly on cruiseships as it is a confined area. The ship does not cause the virus, a passenger or crew member carries it onto the ship. Call me silly, but I use the disinfectant wipes to wipe the armrests, tray tables and seats on the aircraft. Wash your hands constantly and use those sanitizers. If everybody did this, there wouldn't be a problem. I also bring the Clorox wipes to disinfect the cabin and carry Purell. The handrails on the stairs and buttons in the elvators and outside of the elvators are great places to pick up bacteria.

 

Diane

[Chivalrygirl]

Yeah but I got a bad habit of putting my foot in my mouth also, how will I get around that one?

 

but come on you cruises how do I get around my problem :-)

 

 

Also have you ever given any thought to the aircraft that you use to fly to join your ship, these are also not satitized very often?????????

[emmylou]

there is a product out that is called airborne it's an immune-boosting tablet that helps your body fight off germs and viruses, they also have it in single serve packets you can put into bottled water. go to www.AirborneHealth.com and they will send you a sample of the packets.

We also take a bottle of Purel and a smaller bottle to refill.

emmylou

[Sunshine91]

Yeah but I got a bad habit of putting my foot in my mouth also, how will I get around that one?

 

 

I do that sometimes, too. ;)

 

I'm thinking I'll take some alcohol swabs with me - the kind for cleaning my fingertips before a bloodstick - for wiping off the slots. Those machines are likely teeming with the little germy bugs. :eek:

 

Anyone ever notice how dirty money is? I handle cash in my job & my hands are usually filthy after a large deposit. :rolleyes:

[wwwmarge]

If you stay at a hotel before the cruise.... when was the last time the maid wiped off the TV remote or the telephone. There are so many ways we can bring it to the ship.

I think the cruise industry needs to act like there is GI all the time and not react. How about at the port before we board. How clean is some of that area.

We were careful and didn't get sick on Celebrity Mercury in March but that was a awful. It will be awhile before I on that ship again because of the way they handled things. The thought just gives me :eek:.

[AAAAmerican]

Yes Money in paper and minted coinage is a filthy medium.

 

You hit the head on the 12 Penny Nail again.

 

Proper cleaning is so vital. The infection is usually spread from bad hygene.

 

Yes basicaly not washing ones hands properly after visiting the WC for a call of nature...

 

Maybe I was rude before but I asked the staff I saw not washing there hands to wash them.. and that was not on a HAL Ship. Hal is miles ahead in there policy and procedures than the other cruise lines.

 

A perfect example is at the end of last month we went to Bermuda again and it was on A RCL:NYSE Ship..I so wish HAL would go back again to Bermuda.. those Islands are some of the nicest place on Earth!

 

Well we board and go up to.. name with held now... and looked for the boarding lunch... we went to the top and they said all the way back to the end so we like cattle went there as there was no que too.

 

We saw the spread of vittles and looked again for beverages too.

 

Obtaining the ingredients for the sparsely laid plates we found a seat and started to eat... my DW said YUCK.... I wondered if she found a Puck.. (they have an ice rink) an no it was a Dead FLY in her salad... ewwww at least not in a stew..

 

I went up and found the person in charge then a Chef (so called) and showed him and he said yes it is a fly and they are sometimes aboard often... ewwww

 

 

I saw just then too and pointed it out to him too the cleaner sweeping off the Mass Food Presentation was not even wearing those Basic Sanitary Latex Gloves...

 

Well he responded it is not necessary.. huh?

 

Are they kidding people cutting meats, serving foods and cleaning are not required to wear a basic protective tool?

 

I did go back to there so called buffet a few times and looked the same I saw was such a shame... No gloves in the above...

 

So we called it as others did/do too the SLOP Line ..

No variations and not very clean .. I for one would never be seen on there if they care..

 

HAL on the other hand started it all caring for guests above it all.

 

TA good way to see if a Buffet is basically well.. Observe if they change the Trays and not Scrap the ingredients in from another one... carrying germs and foreign matter ....

 

 

 

The ole Dutch saying.. Penny Wise and Pound Foulish is not goulish...

 

 

The best words aboard a SHIP::

 

 

KEEP IT CLEAN!

:cool:

 

I do that sometimes, too. ;)

 

I'm thinking I'll take some alcohol swabs with me - the kind for cleaning my fingertips before a bloodstick - for wiping off the slots. Those machines are likely teeming with the little germy bugs. :eek:

 

Anyone ever notice how dirty money is? I handle cash in my job & my hands are usually filthy after a large deposit. :rolleyes:

[Vic The Parrot]

Maybe I was rude before but I asked the staff I saw not washing there hands to wash them.. and that was not on a HAL Ship. Hal is miles ahead in there policy and procedures than the other cruise lines.

 

 

 

 

Not always the case, mien Herr ....

 

 

There was a staff member on Noordam (maybe he's still there ... ) who didn't wash his hands after using the loo.

 

I managed to avoid him throughout the course of the voyage.