Belfast City Hospital senior staff suspended over C. diff outbreak
Two members of staff suspended at Belfast City Hospital in the wake of a C. Difficile outbreak are understood to be senior nursing staff.
The outbreak is believed to have happened in May and involved a ward which provides care for older people.
According to sources, two separate inquiries were undertaken at the hospital.
One investigated how the bacteria emerged at the ward in the hospital and how the outbreak was managed.
The second investigation was as a result of the first and involved a disciplinary matter.
C. diff is a bacterium that causes extreme diarrhoea in some patients.
The families of those patients who were originally affected have been kept informed.
The BBC further understands that the report into the C. diff outbreak is due to be completed within the next 10 days, while the investigation into the disciplinary matter is due to conclude imminently.
In July, a ward at the Musgrave Park Hospital in Belfast was closed briefly and two patients affected following a C. diff outbreak.