Like other Trusts in the country, we have made the difficult decision to implement further patient visiting restrictions. Increased restrictions are currently in place in our hospitals, due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the local community.
Visitors are only be able to see their loved ones in hospital in exceptional circumstances, such as if they are receiving end of life care or they suffer from a condition (such as dementia or a learning disability) which means not having a family member present would cause distress to the patient.
We understand how disappointing this is to both patients and their loved ones and this decision has been carefully considered. However, we feel that these steps are now necessary in order to keep our patients and our staff safe.
We regularly review the situation and will update this page on our website once we are able to re-start inpatient visiting. This will be dependent on a number of factors, including the prevalence of Covid-19 in the local community.
Virtual visiting
We know how important it is for patients and their loved ones to have contact and so we will continue to run our virtual visiting service. Appointments for our virtual visiting service can be made through our online booking page and also by calling 0333 332 5520.
Keeping in touch
We also offer a keeping in touch service for our patients, this includes delivering essential items to your loved one whilst they are in hospital. For more information, please visit the keeping in touch section of our website.
Exceptional circumstances
You are only able to visit a loved one in hospital for the following exceptional circumstances:
- The patient is receiving end of life care
- The patient is a child on the paediatric ward, being visited by one of their parents or an appropriate adult
- The patient has a mental health issue, where not having a family member present would cause distress to the patient
- The patient has dementia, a learning disability or autism, where not having a family member present would cause distress to the patient.
If one of the above exceptional circumstances applies, please contact the ward where your loved one is staying to organise a visit. If visiting the hospital, you must wear a face covering, wash or sanitise your hands and maintain social distancing in order to keep you, our patients and staff safe.
Before visiting, you will also be required to complete a lateral flow test and receive a negative result. You will be asked for evidence of the negative result when you visit the hospital. This could be the negative test itself, a photograph of the negative test result or showing that a negative result has been recorded on the NHS Covid-19 app.
Maternity
No changes are currently being made to our maternity services’ visiting policies. Full details of the Covid-19 measures in place can be found on the maternity section of our website. We are continually reviewing our approach and, should the position change, will provide an update on our website and social media channels.
Outpatients and visiting our emergency department (A&E)
If you are an outpatient visiting hospital for an appointment or if you need to come to our emergency department, please attend alone where possible and ensure you wear a face covering, regularly wash or sanitise your hands and maintain social distancing.
Covid-19 precautions remain in place in our hospitals
Despite the easing of Covid-19 precautions, including the use of face masks in the local community, it is still a requirement to wear a face covering, to maintain social distancing and to regularly wash or sanitise your hands when in our hospitals. These precautions are in place to protect our patients and our staff.
