To ensure patients and staff are protected from the spread of COVID-19, Animas Surgical Hospital has adopted a series of changes, including limiting visitors.
ASH has put in place a temporary visitor policy that allows:
One adult visitor inside the facility per patient or two adult visitors per pediatric or special needs patient.Visitors must be 18 years of age or older.Anyone with cold or flu symptoms should refrain from visiting patients.Several other procedures have been enacted, including patient and visitor pre-screenings.
ASH staff members are pre-screening patients and visitors at the main entrance for respiratory illnesses before entry into the building.
Patients with cold or flu symptoms will be asked to wear a surgical mask.
Hospital staff will assess visitors’ symptoms and help decide if they should be seen in the emergency department or if they should go home, isolate and self-care.
To limit the number of people in the lobby at one time, visitors may be asked to wait in their cars until they are called to pick up their friend or family member.
Patients, visitors and staff are asked to wash their hands frequently with soap and water or use the hand sanitizer dispensers located around the hospital.
ASH has canceled all patient classes, including its Total Joint Replacement Class. Course videos and guidebooks are available on the Animas Surgical Hospital website at www.animassurgical.com.
Because of a nationwide and a local shortage of COVID-19 diagnostic testing kits, masks and other protective equipment, the Colorado Hospital Association and San Juan Basin Public Health are recommending hospital caregivers assume patients who present with COVID-19 symptoms have the disease and treat them according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
Based on those policies and to conserve resources for those most in need, ASH is limiting COVID-19 testing to critically ill, hospitalized patients who have COVID-19 symptoms.
Patients with COVID-19 symptoms who do not require hospitalization will be treated according to CDC-recommended protocols for people who test positive with the disease.
ASH might expand testing once equipment becomes more readily available.
The hospital said the best way to stay informed about coronavirus is through the San Juan Basin Public Health website at www.sjbpublichealth.org.
parmijo@durangoherald.com
