Medical staff at Greenwich and Lewisham hospitals are insisting people with the highly contagious norovirus should not go to the hospital.

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust has put out a notice informing people that if they have the symptoms of the norovirus or the flu, they should stay at home and not even visit their GP.

University Hospital Lewisham and Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich are experiencing extremely high levels of demand over the winter and staff want to make sure people with minor health issues are going to the right places.

Sarah Carver, matron at UHL A&E, said: “Winter is always busy but we are currently under exceptional pressure, with large volumes of very sick patients.

“We are working closely with community colleagues to meet the demand, but anyone coming to A&E with non-emergency health issues is likely to face a very long wait.

“I would urge people to please use alternative services such as your GP or pharmacy if at all possible.”

One of the main reasons hospital staff want people with the norovirus to stay at home is to protect vulnerable patients as the virus is highly contagious.

The norovirus, and the flu, are caused by viruses and have no cure and you will get better from it if you simply stay at home and recover.

A spokesperson from Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust has asked people to not come to the hospital until you have been free of the norovirus symptoms, including vomiting and diarrhoea, for 48 hours.