By Sentinel Staff
SEARHC today announced new actions at its medical facilities throughout Southeast to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including:
– limiting the number of family members and/or chaperones permitted to accompany a patient to a SEARHC facility to one person per patient. This restriction applies to patients in a treatment room, emergency room, exam room, and hospital. Small children are an exception and not counted as patient accompaniment, but SEARHC urges patients to leave children with childcare if possible so as not to risk exposure to COVID-19.
– effective today, the dine-in areas at Mt. Edgecumbe Medical Center and Sitka Long-Term Care will be closed to the public. The dining areas will remain open to staff members who have passed their mandatory daily health screening. Guests staying in patient housing will receive three hot meals a day by delivery.
The consortium-wide Incident Command System discussed continued efforts to redeploy staff to focus on core medical services and the COVID-19 response.
Maegan Bosak, communications director for SEARHC, said the alternative screening sites, for collecting samples for COVID testing, have been working well, with a number of people using the drive-up sites in Sitka, Juneau, Wrangell, Haines and Klawock.
There are also patient health benefits specialists offering help in securing medical cost coverage for patients needing COVID-19 testing and treatment. Those with questions may call 966-8684.