Carroll County Memorial Hospital tightens visitor policy due to increase in local COVID-19 cases

Carroll County Memorial Hospital
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Carroll County Memorial Hospital has experienced the highest number of COVID-19 patients since the beginning of the pandemic and locally, the cases continue to rise. Therefore, as of Saturday, August 28, CCMH will be scaling back on its visitor policies.

“This change in policy is an unfortunate necessity,” said Dr. Andy Horine, Chief Medical Information Officer. “With increasing cases locally, our top priority is always the care of our patients and the safety of our staff and the community. We have a team constantly monitoring the situation and we hope to relax these policies again as soon as possible.”

The new visitor policies only allow visitors essential to the patients’ physical or emotional well-being into the facility. In addition, all visitors must meet the following criteria:

Inpatient Care:

  • Adult visitors only (18 and older)
  • One designated visitor per patient, per day
  • Visiting Hours are 3-6 p.m.
  • Must use Main Entrance
  • Visitor must be screened, temperature checked, and be free of COVID-19 symptoms
  • Visitor must wear a mask at all times, including patient rooms
  • Isolation patients and patients with COVID-19 will NOT be allowed visitors
  • Exceptions for end of life visitation is under the discretion of the charge nurse

Emergency Department:

  • Adult visitors only (18 and older)
  • One designated visitor per day
  • Visitor will not be allowed to leave and reenter
  • Visitor is expected to remain bedside unless asked to leave by staff
  • Must use Main Entrance
  • Visitor must be screened, temperature checked and be free of COVID-19 symptoms
  • Visitor must wear a mask at all times, including bedside
  • Patients with COVID-19 or COVID-19 symptoms will NOT be allowed visitors
  • Exceptions for end of life visitation is under the discretion of the Emergency Department Staff

Outpatient Care and Jefferson Medical Group:

  • One dedicated parent/caregiver for pediatric or disabled patients who cannot be left alone or need assistance to move throughout the facility
  • One dedicated caregiver/driver for outpatient surgery patients; caregiver/driver will be asked to leave and return upon completion of procedure
  • Visitor must be screened, temperature checked, and be free of COVID-19 symptoms
  • Visitor must wear a mask at all times

“We understand this policy is difficult for patients and visitors,” said Scott Thoreson, CCMH Chief Executive Officer. “At this point, we must minimize the risk of exposure to our patients, visitors, and colleagues. Recently, our hospital has seen the highest number of COVID-19 patients since the beginning of the pandemic and many of the larger facilities are at capacity, making transfers for our sickest patients exceedingly more difficult. If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to get vaccinated. We are seeing vaccines certainly reduce the risk of severe disease requiring hospitalization.”

CCMH continues to work in close partnership with state and local health departments and the CDC, and will provide updates as needed.

The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services activated a statewide public hotline at 877-435-8411 for citizens needing guidance regarding COVID-19. The hotline is operated by medical professionals and is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

For more information about the services at Carroll County Memorial Hospital, visit the Carroll County Memorial Hospital website or call 660-542-1695.


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