Yale New Haven Health Restricts Visitors Due To COVID-19 Surge

GREENWICH, CT — Yale New Haven Health has announced that as of Thursday, there will be extremely limited visitor access at hospital and outpatient facilities due to the increase in community spread of COVID-19.

The new policy includes visitation to inpatients, Emergency Departments, outpatient surgeries and procedural areas. Those having procedures or operations will have to meet their loved ones outside to be picked up unless bedside instructions are absolutely necessary.

In addition, only one support person will be permitted in obstetrics and pediatric patients will be permitted one guardian at a time.

"There is no visitation to hospitalized patients due to the highly contagious nature of the omicron variant. Exceptions to this policy may be made at the discretion of the patient’s clinical team and we will do our best to accommodate exceptions where possible. Our first priority is to protect the health of our patients, visitors and staff," Yale New Haven Health said in a news release Wednesday.

Exceptions for visitors (exceptions do not have to show proof of vaccination):

• ADA – any patient that needs a support person, per the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines, are allowed two assigned support people, these two support people cannot be at the bedside at the same time, however, support persons can be present 24 hours a day.
• Imminent End of Life – when a patient is imminently dying, two visitors can be at the beside. While the two visitors cannot swap or switch, they can be together at the bedside.

Visitors are encouraged to remain closely connected to their loved ones through virtual means, including Skype, FaceTime and/or phone.

"In response to the increase in COVID-19 cases, we made the difficult decision to once again, implement a strict visitation policy," said Dr. Thomas Balcezak, Chief Clinical Officer at Yale New Haven Health, in a news release.

"By taking these steps, we are making every effort to keep risk minimized and ensure the health and well-being of both staff and patients across our health system. The health and safety of our patients, families and staff members is our top priority. This visitation restriction will balance preventing the spread of the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 with the needs of our patients and their loved ones," Balcezak added.

Healthcare professionals from Yale New Haven Health are available to answer specific questions seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. They can be reached at 833-ASK-YNHH (833-275-9644).

Yale New Haven Health includes Yale New Haven Hospital, Bridgeport Hospital, Greenwich Hospital, Lawrence + Memorial Hospital in New London and Westerly Hospital in Rhode Island.