January 3, 2017
HORNELL, NY – St. James Hospital put out this statement last night, about current visitor rules, during flu season:
Due to an increase in influenza in the region, St. James Mercy Hospital, effective at 8 a.m. Wednesday, January 3, will enact the following restrictions on visitation:
• No more than two visitors plus one designated caregiver/support person may be present in a patient’s room at any time
• No one under the age of 14 is permitted to visit the Hospital
• No visitors with symptoms of fever, cough, body aches, or a sore throat may enter the Hospital; they are invited to visit after being symptom-free for 24 hours.
“Our primary goal at St. James Mercy Hospital is to provide the best quality of care in an environment that is safe for our patients and their loved ones,” said Neva Bossard, RN, MSN, Chief Nursing Officer. “We certainly understand the desire to be with patients, and the benefits that come from visitors. Our close monitoring of influenza activity will continue, and we’ll look to return to regular visiting practices as soon as it is deemed safe to do so.”
St. James officials encourage all area residents to be prepared for flu season by getting an influenza vaccination through their primary care provider, pharmacy, or other venue.
St. James Mercy Hospital was founded in 1890 and now provides a full range of inpatient and outpatient services, including emergency, acute medical and surgical, imaging (including mammography, digital imaging, Dexa scanning), and laboratory. Specialty services include orthopedics, general surgery, physical therapy, Express Care, a Coumadin clinic, cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation, and a personal emergency response system called MercyLine. The Hospital works on an ongoing basis to build collaborative relationships with a host of regional partners, in order to ensure the continued continuity of critical health care services in the Hornell community.
