From Friday, the Largs aged care facility started a two-week period of no visitors into the home - a move that will be reassessed after that period.

Management sent out an email to the families of all its residents informing them that as of 8am on Friday, there were to be no visitors.

There will be exceptions on compassionate grounds for those whose family members are in an end-of-life situation. These will be considered on a case by case basis.

But even then visits will be restricted to immediate family, with no more than two family members at a time.

"During this period there will be no visitors to our home, unless there are compassionate circumstances," the email reads. "The safety of our residents and our employees is our highest priority and this has not been a decision that we have made lightly."

Benhome has been similarly proactive. It went into lockdown on Monday as a precautionary measure on Monday after three residents started feeling unwell. It expects to ease the lockdown midweek.

But there will be conditions: restricted access to non-essential visitors, reduced visiting hours (9am to 5pm weekdays, and weekends 10am to non and 2pm to 4pm), maximum two visitors for an hour, enhanced hand hygiene and so on.

The Mercury also contacted Fresh Hope Residential Care at Green Hills but at the time of going to print they had not returned the Mercury's call.