Visit restrictions have started at Newman Regional Health, although not all operations are affected.
Director of Marketing and Public Relations Kacie Hastings says temporary restrictions are now in effect for newborn inpatient areas. Siblings can get permission to visit once they have been screened for symptoms of a fever or cold.
Hastings says healthy visitors need to clean their hands with soap and water or alcohol hand sanitizer, both before and after patient visits. Patients coming to Newman Regional Health and have flu symptoms — fever, coughing and/or sneezing, sore throat, runny nose or stuffy nose — are asked to wear masks.
The new temporary policy comes with increases in respiratory illnesses locally and a sharp spike in influenza cases nationally. Hastings says these visit restrictions will last through the rest of the flu season, possibly as long as March or April.
Lyon County Health Officer Dr Ladun Oyenuga will have an update on local winter illness trends on KVOE’s Newsmaker 2 segment at 8:20 am Wednesday.
