Hospital announces private rooms, allows visitors again

VENICE — Venice Regional Bayfront Health will now use most shared patient rooms as private rooms to enhance patient safety and comfort. The hospital is also allowing visitors again. 

Private rooms are expected to lead to easier movements to reduce falls and to provide more space for the care team and visitors, according to a press release. Private rooms also can improve rest and quality of sleep, reduce noise and provide greater privacy during consultations with the care team.

“Visits from friends and family, which have been suspended since March because of COVID-19, are an important part of the recovery process for our patients,” says Beryl Ramsey, interim CEO, in a statement. “We are confident that the guidelines we have established will protect the health and safety of patients, visitors and our staff.”

Patients can have visitors between 5 a.m. and 6 p.m., seven days a week. Other guidelines in place include that patients are allowed one visitor per day; visitors must wear a face mask at all times and observe social distancing; visitors must enter through a screening checkpoint for a temperature check and a series of questions regarding health and recent travel; and patients with visitor restrictions, such as a suspected or positive COVID-19 diagnosis, or on isolation precautions, will be allowed visitors when their condition improves.

Venice Regional Bayfront Health is a 312-bed, acute care hospital providing health care services to the greater Venice area. The hospital’s services include cardiac, stroke, orthopedic, metabolic, open-heart and advanced surgery, wound care, women’s care and interventional radiology.