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A school in Canterbury has been receiving support from Health New Zealand after an outbreak of gastroenteritis.
Dr Imogen Evans, public health medicine specialist for Health NZ, said the school reported a number of staff cases of gastro after a shared morning tea at the unnamed school.
“The NationalPublic Health Service has provided the school with public health advice to contain the spread.
“We do not believe there is any ongoing public health risk.”
According to Health NZ, gastro is a term which describes the combination of diarrhoea, nausea, stomach pain and fever.
A Canterbury school is receiving support from Health NZ after a gastro outbreak among staff.
It is usually caused by an infection in the intestines or stomach and is highly infectious.
Norovirus, rotavirus, salmonella, campylobacter and cryptosporidium can all cause symptoms, and people tend to have bacterial gastroenteritis after eating or drinking food or water that is contaminated with the bacteria.
Health NZ said gastro tends to go away after a few days, but symptoms usually last between seven and 10 days.
General tips for preventing gastro from Health NZ include washing hands thoroughly with plenty of soap, cleaning under fingernails, rinsing hands well and drying with a clean towel after using the toilet or changing a nappy, before or after preparing food, or after cleaning up vomit or diarrhoea.
People with the illness should not go to work, school, university or early childhood centres until they have been symptom free for 48 hours, and they should not prepare food for others for at least 48 hours after their vomiting and diarrhoea stops.
