INDIANAPOLIS — Franciscan Health hospitals in Indianapolis, Mooresville and Carmel, along Community Hospital locations in Indianapolis, announced new inpatient visitation restrictions effective today due to increasing activity of respiratory viruses, including COVID-19, flu and RSV.
As of Thursday afternoon, Columbus Regional Hospital had not instituted visitation restrictions.
At Franciscan, the restrictions include:
- Visitors must be at least 18 years of age.
- If visiting a patient who has respiratory symptoms, visitors are asked to keep a mask on and do not visit the cafeteria, coffee & gift shops or waiting rooms.
- Those having symptoms suggestive of respiratory illness, including, but not limited to: cough, fever, shortness of breath, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, body aches, diarrhea, tiredness, headache and vomiting, will not be allowed to visit.
- Visitors should continue to practice good hand hygiene.
- Only two visitors per patient are allowed to visit at a time (excluding clergy who are part of the care team).
- Visitation hours are from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The restrictions only affect inpatient areas and do not apply to outpatient departments, the hospital system said.
For Community Health, the following restrictions apply:
- No visitors under age 18.
- Visitors are limited to patient’s immediate family or as identified by patient.
- No more than two visitors at a time per patient.
- Visitors must wear a mask in patient room when requested.
- Those with respiratory symptoms may not visit.
Additionally, Johnson Memorial Hospital in Franklin is requesting, but not requiring the community to take the following precautions:
- Practice social distancing guidelines in all areas of the hospital, including the Willow Cafe.
- If you develop respiratory symptoms, wear a medical-grade mask.
Locally, Columbus Regional Health, for its part, said it is continuing to see high circulation of respiratory viruses in the community and is monitoring the situation, though viral activity has not yet reached the threshold for CRH to implement restrictions, officials said.
COVID-19 hospitalizations at CRH have hovered between seven to 10 people over the past few days, which officials said was a slight decline in hospitalizations. At one point in the past three weeks, COVID-19 hospitalizations had reached 19.
Currently, CRH is starting to see “a bit of an increase” in influenza A cases, the hospital said.
“We are monitoring our inpatient numbers on a rolling seven-day period and have identified a threshold that if met consistently for those 7 days, would institute a change in universal precautions,” CRH spokeswoman Kelsey DeClue said Thursday. “However, we’ve not reached that threshold yet, so all protocols and procedures – especially those for the public and visitors – remain the same.”
“We continue to see high circulation of respiratory viruses, especially flu, RSV in children and adults and COVID, so we highly encourage those at high risk to mask and of course anyone with signs of illness to stay home, seek treatment when necessary and mask when in public,” DeClue added.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with information provided by The Daily Journal of Franklin.
