Effective Tuesday January 26: Important notice for Care Partners
NBRHC has been working to improve our Care Partner access and screening process over the last few weeks. With these improvements we are asking our Care Partners to help us ensure we can continue to safely welcome them into our facility by following these additional guidelines:
1) Avoid arriving before visiting hours start
We know that to avoid some of the line ups experienced at the beginning of our Care Partner process, some of you began arriving early and waited in the lobby. By arriving right at the start of visiting hours we can avoid crowding in our common areas.
2) Limit your travel in the building
Our Care Partners are asked to go straight to the unit and patient room they are here to visit, and straight out when they are ready to leave.
3) Wear your mask at all times while in the facility
We ask all our Care Partners to wear their mask at all times while in the facility, even when in the patient’s room.
4) Do not bring food or drink into the hospital
To support wearing a mask at all times while in the facility, we are also asking you to avoid bringing food or drink into the hospital and/or purchasing food items to bring with you to the unit. Eating and drinking requires removing your mask and we require our Care Partners to wear their masks at all times.
Thank you for working with us to help reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission at NBRHC.
Limited entry in place
As we continue to monitor the COVID-19 activity in our community, we are asking for your help to ensure we can continue to safely support Care Partner visits at NBRHC.
Care partner access is subject to change based on a number of internal and external factors including COVID-19 activity in the community and Health Centre and the individual patient’s progression of care.
Important reminders for NBRHC care partners
To review the latest version of our Care Partner staged process and how NBRHC could relax or restrict Care Partner visits during the pandemic, click here for the working draft.
*** Please note that during provincial lockdown the province’s regional framework is paused—as a result, the information included in this working draft is also on hold.***
To continue to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission and protect our most vulnerable people, NBRHC visitor restrictions are still in place at all its sites. We are now moving to a +1 for inpatients—this direction is based on availability of space to allow for physical distance.
Each inpatient may have one dedicated care partner (plus a designated alternate) for the patient’s length of stay between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. or 5 and 8 p.m. (only one entry and one exit each day)
Children could be a dedicated care partner. A care partner who is a child (a young caregiver, defined as children and youth as young as 8 years old) has to be accompanied by one parent, guardian or family member.
Two dedicated visitors are allowed to provide end-of-life support to a patient. These visitors are also not restricted to the two-hour limit and could be different people each day. Everyone must be able to appropriately physically distance.
PREVIOUS RESTRICTIVE ENTRY IS STILL IN PLACE IN OUTPATIENT AREAS (Emergency Department, Outpatient Clinics).
Up to one person may remain with an inpatient or outpatient at all times and is not restricted to the two-hour time limit if they are:
We appreciate the community’s cooperation with this direction and recognize that it is difficult not to visit with friends and family—these are necessary steps for the safety and protection of our patients, staff and physicians.
Process for care partners supporting inpatients
If you are visiting a loved one in Kirkwood Campus (Sudbury), click here for more information.
Frequently asked questions
It refers to people—family, friends, neighbours, colleagues, community members—who provide critical and often ongoing personal, social, psychological and physical support, assistance and care, without pay for people in need of support due to frailty, illness, degenerative disease, physical/cognitive/mental disability, or end of life circumstances.
Designated care partners are distinct from casual visitors as they are most familiar with the patient’s diagnosis and health status, have been performing health care, treatment and personal tasks for a patient with complex needs, they know their loved one best and are uniquely attuned to subtle changes in their behaviour or status.
It is recommended that care partner presence include, but not be limited to:
Patients should be the one to determine their designated care partner. This could be a loved one, friend, family, neighbour, colleague, community member. A patient who has a substitute decision maker (SDM) can choose someone other than their SDM to be their care partner.
End-of-life is defined as having a Palliative Performance Scale (PPS) of 30 percent or less.
It’s important to note that care partner access varies by organization (other hospitals, long-term care, retirement homes) and patients might experience different restrictions between facilities.
In some areas, outdoor visits (weather permitting) could be an appropriate option and is at the discretion of the care team. Visitors must follow the same requirements set out for indoor visits and these visits must take place in designated areas (as approved by the unit manager) and only with the designated care partner.
Yes, it’s important that to reduce variability of practise across units, that everyone remains consistent with the application of these directions. Variability can lead to unnecessary confusion and distress for patients, families and healthcare providers.
Currently, testing is not mandated for visitors entering our Health Centre. The decision to move to new visitor limitations was based on low COVID-19 activity in our district, strong screening precautions and on-site surveillance being done by infection prevention and control.
While we have visitor limitations in place, we want to ensure that you stay connected with your loved one who is in the hospital during this time. Virtual care and family connection is strongly encouraged and should be supported where in-person connection is not possible.
Below are some ways you can stay connected.
Telephone calls:
There are no fees for local calls on bedside phones.
Internet access:
There are no fees for internet access at the bedside.
Free Wi-Fi:
Due to the current COVID-19 situation, we are pleased to be able to provide free basic Wi-Fi internet access until further notice, to help everyone stay better connected with family and friends.
With the introduction of care partners (essential visitors) into the facility, we ask that food deliveries and patient belongings (e.g. clean clothing, electronic device with the charger, toiletries) now be brought in with care partners during dedicated visiting hours (11 a.m. to 1 p.m. & 5 to 8 p.m.). If the assigned care partner is unable to assist, special arrangement can be made for personal belongings that are dropped off at the screening desk. NBRHC does not have capacity to accept food deliveries for inpatients.
50 College Drive,
P.O. Box 2500
North Bay, ON
P1B 5A4
Tel: 705-474-8600
680 Kirkwood Drive,
Sudbury, ON
P3E 1X3
Tel: 705-675-9193
Fax: 705-675-6817
