PBMC resumes limited visitation for non-COVID patients after state lifts restrictions
Peconic Bay Medical Center has updated its policy to allow limited visitation following Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s announcement last week that hospitals could resume letting people into the facilities.
The state allowed hospitals and group homes to begin accepting visitors at their own discretion starting last Friday. All visitation had been put on hold in March to limit spread of the coronavirus.
PBMC will allow one visitor at a time to be permitted at the bedside. Visitation is from 1 to 5 p.m. and all visitors must be 18 or older. Any COVID-19 patients still cannot have visitors.
Additional guidelines are:
• Total visitation time for all visitors cannot exceed the four-hour maximum. And the visitors must stay in the patient’s room except when directed by hospital staff to leave for procedures.
• Visitors must undergo symptom and temperature checks upon entering the facility.
• A hospital-issued mask must be worn by visitors at all times.
• Visitors must wear appropriate personal protective equipment for isolation rooms as recommended by the department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• All visitors must sign in at the front desk when arriving.
• Visitors must wash their hands or use hand sanitizer upon arrival and when leaving the patient’s room.
• Visitors are not permitted access to hospital pantries and cafeteria. They are also not permitted into the emergency department or peri-operative area.
• Visitors are not allowed to use patient bathrooms.
“We encourage visitors to remain closely connected to their loved ones through virtual visual means such as Skype or FaceTime,” a notice from the hospital said.
Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital in Greenport said on Tuesday it is still reviewing the State Department of Health guidelines “for expanding patient visitation with protocols for specific safety measures, health screenings and time-limited visits.”
“Visitors and loved ones play an imperative role in our patients’ healing and recovery, and we look forward to welcoming them back,” the hospital said.
