St. Luke's General Hospital in Kilkenny is one of two hospitals that have become victims of an outbreak in Covid.
St. Luke's and University Hospital Galway have introduced visiting restrictions following the outbreaks.
University Hospital Galway has urged the public not to visit the hospital if they are feeling unwell.
St. Luke's says it's advising patients to only attend its emergency department if absolutely necessary.
In a statement on the HSE website, an update says:
"Due to increased infection control measures required at this time for Covid 19, St. Luke’s General Hospital will be temporarily suspending hospital visiting effective immediately except for those visiting the maternity unit and exceptional circumstances as determined by each ward manager."
The HSE says it's currently seeing an increase in Covid-19 infections in Ireland, causing hospital admissions.
The news comes following advice from Grace Rothwell, Chief Officer of South East Community Healthcare, urging people to consider all care options before attending any emergency departments this bank holiday weekend.
When there is a large volume of ED attendance patients are prioritised in terms of clinical need and wait times for non-urgent care can be lengthy.
"People across counties Carlow, Kilkenny, South Tipperary, Waterford and Wexford can help HSE staff at a busy time such as this August Bank Holiday Weekend by remembering when care is needed, to consider all the options for non-emergency care – such as Injury Units, Out of Hours GP (Caredoc) and pharmacies before attending an ED," Grace said.
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