After limiting young visitors to Triangle-area hospital campuses during the winter, UNC Health is scaling back its restrictions.
A release from the healthcare system on Friday said beginning the morning of Monday, March 25, it would be returning to normal visitation rules as hospital admissions for respiratory illnesses have decreased to normal levels. The restrictions included asking visitors 11 years old and younger to not be in inpatient areas or waiting rooms in order to curb any spread of sicknesses like influenza, RSV, and COVID-19, which went into effect on January 2.
The temporary change affected the main UNC Hospitals campus in Chapel Hill, UNC Health in Hillsborough, UNC Health Rex in Raleigh and Holly Springs, UNC Health Chatham in Siler City, and the Youth Behavioral Health hospital in Butner. Now, UNC officials are asking visitors to check each hospital’s website under “Visitor Policy” to see if there are any special updates and to follow protocol. That includes visitors of all ages exhibiting respiratory illness symptoms to still be prohibited from inpatient areas and waiting rooms, and UNC Health asks those people to stay home instead of visiting patients in their hospitals. Additionally, face masks are still encouraged for all visitors to hospital campuses.
“Our infection prevention teams continuously monitor key criteria to help guide hospital leaders’ decision-making of when to impose and lift visitor restrictions to protect patients and teammates,” read a statement from UNC Health about the lifting of restrictions.
According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services dashboard, both emergency department visits and hospital admissions stemming from respiratory symptoms have steadily dropped since the end of January. The levels reported the week of March 11 — the latest data available as of March 25 — shows both of those rates at their lowest levels since October 2023. The full dashboard can be found here.
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