RiverView Health Adds Safety Procedure for Visitation

4/30/2012

To ensure the safety of patients, employees and visitors, RiverView Health will be implementing a new visitor’s policy to account for all individuals within the confines of the hospital. The new policy, which will go into effect on May 14th, states that the only visitor access between the hours of 8:30 p.m. and 6:30 a.m. is the main entrance located on the south side of the building. Visitors will sign in on the visitor log located at the front desk and be provided with a visitor pass to be worn for the duration of their visit. Visitors will be requested to leave their pass at the front desk upon their departure from the building.

The following visitation policies remain in place:

• Children must be accompanied by an adult and may not be left unsupervised.
• Visitors are not permitted if they have a respiratory or any sign of a communicable infection, such as a skin infection.
• Parents are encouraged to stay with pediatric patients.
• Partners are encouraged to spend as much time as they wish with obstetrics patients. Grandparents, and sisters and brothers of the baby may visit anytime, with nurse discretion. For the comfort of the mother, a one-hour limit is requested for all visitors except the partner.
• Intensive Care visits are at the nurse’s discretion. Frequency and duration of visits are based upon the patient’s condition. There is a limit of two visitors at a time.
• Emergency Department visitors are restricted to two visitors at a time, based on the nurse’s discretion, and the needs of the Emergency Department.  Parents are allowed to stay with pediatric patients at all times.  Visitors to the department must check-in with the front desk and the nurse will be paged to allow the visitor(s) into the department. 
• Restrictions to RiverView Care Center visitation may be requested when the visit poses a health or safety risk to staff, a resident or otherwise violate a resident’s rights.

A lounge is available on the third floor of the hospital for visitors and patients.

Each patient will be informed of his or her right to receive visitors whom he or she designates, whether a spouse, domestic partner, another family member, or a friend, and the right to withdraw or deny such consent at any time.

RiverView will not restrict, limit or deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.