In order to contain the spread of the Influenza virus, both seasonal and H1N1, Provena United Samaritans Medical Center has issued temporary restrictions on visitors in the hospital.
"We have an obligation to our patients, our staff, and our community at large," states Molly Nicholson, Chief Nurse Executive at Provena, "to prevent the spread of the virus and protect everyone's health."
Effective Monday, October 19, the hospital is restricting visitors to healthy adults, age 18 and over only. The policy will remain throughout the flu season, until further notice.
"Young people are more susceptible to contracting influenza, and they are also the most likely population to spread the illness," states Nicholson.
Patients of all ages needing medical care will continue to be treated as always, but children will not be allowed to visit patients in the facility. The hospital also asks adults coming to the facility for outpatient testing and procedures to make arrangements for their children, rather than having young ones accompany them to appointments.
"The Manchester Flu Epidemic of 1937 is a great example of how social isolation can prevent an outbreak from becoming a full-blown pandemic," states Mike Brown, President/CEO at Provena United Samaritans. "By employing very strict patient contact, and family isolation, that situation was contained. And we're employing similar methods today."
Signs stating the temporary restrictions will be posted at entry points to the medical center. The signs also serve as a reminder that anyone with respiratory-illness symptoms such as cough, fever, sore throat, should not visit.
"Having a plan for dealing with a pandemic is always part of our disaster planning process," states Nicholson. "We have policies and procedures in place to deal with issues such as staffing, securing additional supplies and resources, and taking extra precautions."
While medical center officials understand that some families may not appreciate the changes, they ask for understanding and cooperation with the overall goal of keeping everyone-patients, visitors, staff-as healthy as possible.
Some of the other steps Provena United Samaritans has taken to help prevent the spread of influenza including:
- Staff and volunteer flu vaccinations
- Return-to-work policies for staff
- Precautionary measures for patients who present with symptoms
- Respiratory stations set up in public waiting areas that include masks, tissues, and sanitizer
- Providing information about the flu on the website and in patient waiting areas.
"With everyone's cooperation, there are a lot of things we can do as a community to weather this flu season," states Nicholson "including diligent hand-washing, getting vaccinated, and staying home to rest and recover when ill to prevent infecting others."
For more information on influenza, visit www.provena.org/usmc, the Center for Disease Control, www.cdc.gov , or the Vermilion County Health Department at www.vchd.org. |
