Posted on: Monday, March 16, 2020
WINCHESTER/BURLINGTON – Winchester Hospital and Lahey Hospital and Medical Center, both of which are part of Beth Israel Lahey Health, are closely monitoring the rapidly evolving situation with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
Robust processes and protocols were enacted as of Friday, March 13 to ensure staff can assess and care for patients, and to protect other patients, staff and visitors. This means that to ensure the protection of all patients and staff members, both hospitals are now restricting visitors.
Exceptions may be made to allow for no more than one healthy visitor at a time, per patient, in certain limited circumstances, such as in the event of the birth of a child, to support a patient at the end of life, or to accommodate a caretaker for essential needs.
Decisions regarding visitor exceptions will be made by the patient’s care team on a case-by-case basis, and any visitors will be screened for COVID-19 risk factors.
The hospitals are continually reviewing their protocols and will update them as needed. For up-to-date information, visit https://www.winchesterhospital.org/ and/or https://www.lahey.org/lhmc/ or follow them on social media.
For the latest information on COVID-19 in Massachusetts, visit the Massachusetts Department of Health website. Additional information is available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
