A reminder about Asante’s visitation policy

Nearly two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, confusion over Asante’s visitor policy persists. This is understandable given the fact that rules have been adjusted according to surge severity. As omicron begins to slowly recede, here’s a good reminder of our policy, which appears on our public website.

Visitation policy

Our patients’ safety is Asante’s top priority. This policy is designed to ensure the safety of patients, staff and visitors while slowing the spread of COVID-19. It was developed and implemented to comply with state and federal mandates.

All individuals, including hospital staff and health care workers, will be screened before entry. The points of entry to the facilities are limited to support proper screening.

Asante has ensured that common areas that remain open are able to accommodate physical distancing. Visitors must remain in patient rooms and go directly to and from the cafeteria and entrances/exits.

Asante has implemented measures such as patient-specific tablets to increase remote communication with families and ensure language access, including CART real-time captioning and American Sign Language and spoken-language interpretation services (e.g., phone, FaceTime, Skype, etc.).

Asante will ensure patients, including patients who communicate in a language other than English, minors and patients with disabilities, have their needs met in accordance with U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Civil Rights requirements.

Asante screening criteria for visitors

Everyone coming into the hospital will be screened.

You may be denied entry if you:

• Exhibit symptoms, including, but not limited to, fever, sore throat, runny nose, cough, shortness of breath and body aches.
• Have traveled internationally within the past 14 days to CDC level 3 risk countries or have been on a cruise within the last 30 days.
• Have been recently tested for, or diagnosed with, COVID-19 (if not yet released from quarantine or isolation by the local health department).
• Have had contact with known or suspected COVID-19 cases within the past 14 days.

Visitor restrictions

• All visitors and support persons must complete the screening process.
• No visitors under the age of 18.
• One visitor per patient at a time.

Exclusions

• • Two guardians allowed per patient in pediatrics/NICU.
  • Two visitors allowed per patient in labor delivery and maternal child.
  • Two visitors per patient receiving end-of-life care.
  • Court-appointed visitors, including pre-commitment investigators and legal counsel assigned to individual patients in the Behavioral Health Unit/Progressive Care Unit.
  • Support persons designed as such will be allowed. A support person is a family member, guardian, personal care assistant or other paid or unpaid attendant selected by a patient with a disability to physically or emotionally assist the patient or ensure effective communication with the patient, as defined by state law and related regulations.
• ALL VISITORS must pass the screening criteria and comply with infection control procedures (e.g., masking, handwashing).
• Patients will have adequate and lawful access to support persons pursuant to state law and chaplains or clergy in conformance the Religious Freedom Restoration Act and Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act.

Education and signage

Asante educates individuals seeking entry to the facilities to:

• Perform hand hygiene. Before entering a patient room and after leaving a patient room, individuals shall wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds or clean hands with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Avoid touching their face.
• Use good respiratory etiquette: Cover coughs and sneezes with the elbow and properly use and dispose tissues.
• Use personal protective equipment properly.

Asante has signage regarding screening protocols and visitation restrictions.

Each person seeking entry to the facilities has the opportunity to take written information applicable to the screening protocols and visitation restrictions, which include instructions regarding the facility’s procedures to follow if an individual believes they are being inappropriately restricted from the facility.

Visitors who fail to comply with Asante policy may be removed from the facilities.

If you encounter any resistance, consult our tip sheet, Words That Work: Visiting Restrictions. If you have any questions about the visitor policy, please email [email protected].