St. Dominic’s Health Visiting Hours & Guidelines

• Presence of a visitor in the patient care area is dependent upon the safety and well-being of all patients. Visitors may be asked to leave the patient care unit in the event of an emergency and directed to the designated waiting area.
• Visitation is considered open and unrestricted, except on certain units and departments or in clinically necessary situations. To promote patient care, comfort, safety, and a restful environment, quiet hours will begin nightly at 8pm.
• Visitors must be 12 years of age or older, unless prior approval is obtained or if visiting in a designated area such as, but not limited to, labor and delivery and postpartum units.
• The number of visitors and/or length of time for visiting may be limited at the discretion of the patient’s nurse, physician, or hospital administration. If at any time the patient’s nurse, physician, or hospital administration determines that visitors are interfering with the patient’s care or need for rest, he or she may restrict visitation for a limited time. The patient’s nurse must discuss these concerns with the patient or designated spokesperson for the patient prior to limiting visitation.
• The patient’s physician may order specific visitation requirements at any time.
• Visitors and support persons are required to wear the appropriate PPE necessary when warranted by patient diagnosis. When visiting a patient in isolation, visitors should be encouraged to minimize their time spend in other locations of the facility.
• To maintain a clean and hygienic environment, visitors should refrain from eating in patient rooms and minimize the presence/storage of personal belongings within patient rooms.
• The nurse caring for the patient will ensure the patient and visitors understand the visiting plan and may document the education in the patient’s medical record.
• Out of respect for patient privacy and to promote a healing and safe environment, support persons and visitors are not to loiter in the hall, linger at the nurses’ station and/or work areas, or go into other patient care areas.

• Each patient is allowed a support person and an additional visitor, for a total of two visitors, at bedside during the entire duration of the patient’s surgical or procedural area stay.
• Support persons and/or visitors will not be allowed in procedural, surgical, or recovery rooms. During these times, support persons and visitors will be allowed to wait in the designated waiting areas.

• One support person is allowed at the bedside during the entire duration of the patient’s stay in the Labor & Delivery and Postpartum units.
• Siblings and children under the age of 12 years are allowed to visit with adult (18 years of older) supervision during general visitation hours.

Neonatal ICU (NICU)

• Mothers, designated support persons (with the second identification band), and up to 4 additional visitors (identified by the mother) are allowed to visit during general visitation hours.
• Mothers and designated support persons (with second identification band) may visit at any time for feedings and/or skin-to-skin interactions.
• Two visitors will be allowed to visit the patient at any one-time.
• Siblings ages 3 and up are allowed one 30-minute visit per day during general visitation hours, with parental or legal guardian supervision.

• Visitors may be asked to leave the patient care area in the event of an emergency and will be directed to a designated waiting area.

• End of life is defined as anticipated death and/or planned withdrawal of life-sustaining interventions (i.e., ventilators, etc.). The designated senior director over the patient care area where the patient is receiving medical treatment may adjust visitation age requirements at his/her discretion. All children must be accompanied by an adult (18 years or older).

• St. Dominic’s reserves the right to adjust visitation if visitors are interfering with the patient’s care, need for rest, or under other special circumstances (i.e., end of life, patient care conferences, etc.). These changes will be discussed with the patient or designated spokesperson for the patient prior to making any changes.

• The patient’s physician may order specific visiting requirements at any time.

• The nurse caring for the patient will ensure the family’s understanding of the patient’s visitation plan and general visitation guidelines for the patient care area.

• Out of respect for patient privacy and to promote a healing and safe environment, visitors are not to loiter in the hall, linger at the nurses’ station, or go into other patient care areas.

• Visitation hours will be daily from 8:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. until 06:00 a.m.
• Two visitors will be allowed to visit the patient at any one-time during visitation hours.

• One support person is allowed at the bedside during the entire duration of the emergency department stay.
• An additional visitor will also be allowed during the emergency stay for a total of two visitors.

• Patients may have up to two visitors at a time. Children, age 12 and above, are allowed with an adult.