Surgeries To Resume At Fredericksburg-Area Hospital Centers

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — Mary Washington Healthcare will resume scheduled surgeries and procedures on Monday, a decision that aligns with Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s announcement this week that scheduled medical procedures will be allowed to start up again effective Friday.

Early in the coronavirus crisis, Virginia hospitals took the precautionary step of postponing non-emergency medical procedures to preserve personal protective equipment and to create additional capacity in their facilities.

“As we consider the current situation in Fredericksburg, and throughout the Commonwealth, we now believe the time is right to begin providing non-emergency, scheduled procedures to people who need care to improve their health outcomes,” Dr. Mike McDermott, president and CEO of Mary Washington Healthcare.

At a virtual town hall Thursday night, McDermott said Mary Washington Healthcare's hospitals in Fredericksburg and Stafford County are currently treating 15 patients who have tested positive for the coronavirus. The hospitals also are treating 14 patients who are showing coronavirus symptoms but have not received their test results yet.

Forty-seven COVID-19 patients have been treated at the two hospitals and discharged since the start of the coronavirus crisis. Ten people have died at the two hospitals from COVID-19, he said.

McDermott said the health care system's coronavirus testing capability has improved significantly over the past month and the system now has the capacity to conduct hundreds of tests per day. Every patient at the hospitals now gets tested for the coronavirus.

Based on the number of positives tests at the two hospitals, McDermott said at the town hall that it appears Mary Washington Healthcare reached a peak in positive tests around April 20. "There's been some stability in flattening in the week since that peak," he said. "We are seeing a kind of stable amount of patients that are requiring hospitalized care and intensive care unit care at our Mary Washington Healthcare facilities here in Fredericksburg region."

Get the latest updates on the new coronavirus in Virginia as they happen. Sign up for free news alerts and a newsletter in your Patch town.

That flattening trend is one of the reasons why Mary Washington Healthcare decided to allow elective surgeries and procedures to resume Monday.

When preparing for these procedures, Mary Washington Healthcare is asking that people self-quarantine for one week prior to the procedure, Dr. Christopher Newman, chief operations officer and chief medical officer for Mary Washington Healthcare, said at Thursday's town hall.

"That is really to prevent them from getting infected by going out into the community and to ensure they're safe when they come to the hospital or to our ambulatory surgery center for the procedure," Newman said.

Four days before the procedure, people will be required to be tested at one of Mary Washington Healthcare's drive-thru sites in Stafford County, King George County and Fredericksburg to ensure that the person is not an asymptomatic carrier.

A final coronavirus screening will occur on the day of the procedure. The person will have their temperature taken and will be screened for signs of coronavirus. The hospital and surgery centers also will confirm that the coronavirus lab work is negative at the time, Newman said.

Many of these procedures, which have been delayed for as long as six weeks to create capacity for coronavirus patients, are medically necessary but were not required to be done immediately. "It's really important to not to continue to delay that kind of care for weeks or months further," Newman said.

"We're at a point now where we have the safe capacity, we have the safe supplies and we can keep you safe when you come to our facilities in order to give you that care," he said.

Safety protocols established by Mary Washington Healthcare include:

• People scheduled for a surgery or procedure will receive a COVID-19 test prior to their scheduled surgery or procedure. Only patients with a negative test will proceed.
• People scheduled for a surgery or procedure at Mary Washington and Stafford Hospitals will have a period of self-quarantine prior to their scheduled surgery or procedure.
• All people entering Mary Washington Healthcare facilities are pre-screened for COVID-19 symptoms, including administering an infrared temperature check.
• All people entering Mary Washington Healthcare facilities are asked to wear a mask. Patients may bring their own mask or opt to wear one supplied by the health system.
• All care teams are asked to wear personal protetive equipment relevant to the care they are providing. All Mary Washington Healthcare personnel are encouraged to wear a mask while in a health care system facility.
• Visitors are prohibited at Mary Washington Healthcare facilities. A support person is still allowed for laboring mothers, children under 18, patients with confusion, altered medical status, or developmental delays, and end-of-life patients.
• Six-foot physical distancing is required in public areas. Floor markers are being installed for guidance in waiting rooms.
• Extra cleaning and disinfection of high-touch, public surfaces will continue.
• Infectious patients will continue to be cared for in isolation, away from non-infectious patients.

If there is a sudden surge in COVID-19 patients in the Fredericksburg area or any changes to the available supply of personal protective equipment, Mary Washington Healthcare said it is prepared to stop non-emergency medical procedures and surgeries.

“We have seen a decreasing number of COVID-19 positive patients requiring hospital care in our community. Our hospitals follow best practice care and infection prevention protocols and are exceedingly safe facilities,” McDermott said.

Mary Washington Healthcare is positioned "to safely and responsibly take the next steps of reopening some of our health care services while poised to adjust our approach in response to any new challenges we face in the weeks to come," he said.

Mary Washington Healthcare's Mary Washington Hospital in Fredericksburg is a 451-bed regional medical center. The health care system's Stafford Hospital is a a 100-bed community hospital. Mary Washington Healthcare is a not-for-profit health system.

RELATED:

• Northam To Allow Elective Surgeries, Dental Procedures In May
• VA Coronavirus: Daily Tests Reach 5,500 As State Aims For 10,000
• Pilots, Drivers Honor Health Care Workers In Time Of Coronavirus