Source: Waikato District Health Board
From Thursday 3 November our visiting guidelines are changing to reflect the increased level of COVID-19 in the community and COVID-19 positive patients receiving care at Waikato Hospital.
This means some visitor restrictions and infection prevention measures must be bought back at some of our wards at Waikato Hospital to help keep our most vulnerable people safe, while other areas maintain their current visitor policy.
Visiting hours 11am-1.30pm and 4pm-8pm daily
From Thursday all wards in the Menzies Building of Waikato Hospital will be limited to one visitor per patient. The wards affected are M2, M3, M4, M5, M6, M7, M8, M12, M14, M16, M17, M18 and Cardiac Care wards 1, 2 and 3.
We understand the importance whānau and friends play in the recovery of our patients but due to the size of the bed spaces in these wards and the nature of the building’s airflow this is a necessary step to keep our patients, their whānau and our staff safe.
Anyone intending on visiting Waikato Hospital over this period is encouraged to contact patient enquiries on 07 839 8899 to ensure you are informed if the person you intend visiting is able to take visitors.
These additional restrictions only affect wards in the Menzies Building of the Waiora Waikato Hospital campus. All other areas of Waikato Hospital and other hospitals in the Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand Waikato district maintain our current visitor policy at this time:
- A maximum of two visitors may visit a patient in wards at any one time
- This will include the key support person, so if two people want to visit the key support person will need to leave while they visit
- No children under the age of 12 can visit at this time
Two support people may attend 24/7 in Delivery Suite and birthing facilities
A key support person may attend 24/7 in the following areas
- Emergency Department
- Women’s Assessment Unit
- Children’s areas
- Intensive Care Unit
Any additional visitors will be at the discretion of the charge nurse manager, charge midwife manager, or out of hours, the duty nurse manager prior to arrival.
Everyone visiting our sites must:
- wear a surgical mask at all times while on site (or increased PPE if instructed by clinical staff)
- use hand sanitiser on entry and exit from our facilities
- maintain physical distancing
Clinics: Patients attending clinics can bring one support person with them to clinic.
Sometimes increased safety protocols may be required, such as all visitors to have a rapid antigen test (RAT) prior to entry at specific locations. This helps us to prevent or control local outbreaks.
For more information on our visiting policy: www.waikatodhb.health.nz/visitors
Thank you for your continued understanding and support.
