SHA facilities to allow visitors for compassionate care

The Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) announced temporary changes to its visitor policies on Wednesday.

In a media release, the SHA said compassionate care visitors would be allowed, with some restrictions.

It includes immediate family during end-of-life care, the family of a patient before major surgery or visitors that help with clinic care, the release said.

The rules vary for different departments and are as stated by the SHA.

• Patients in end-of-life care including those who are in palliative care, hospice care, or at high risk for loss of life, as determined by the attending physician, in consultation with a unit manager/charge nurse.
• Maternal and postpartum units may have two visitors at one time if approved by the unit manager/charge nurse (e.g. both a partner and doula; or both surrogate support and an intended parent).
• Pediatric units may in rare situations have two visitors at one time if approved by the unit manager/charge nurse (e.g. both parents in a pediatric end of life situation).
• Intensive care/NICU/or critical care situations where the attending physician determines the patient’s condition is considered high risk for loss of life.
• Outpatient, emergency department patients, urgent care and inpatient who have specific challenges such as mobility, hearing, visual or memory impairment.
• Residents in long-term care and special care homes where it is determined that the residents needs are unable to be met by the care team, visitation will be restricted to two (2) designated individuals with one family/support person present at a time.

All healthy visitors must undergo health screenings-which include a temperature check and questionnaire-when they arrive at a facility

At this time the only visitor exception is for compassionate reasons. No other visitors are permitted in SHA hospitals, clinics, community and continuing care facilities because of the COVID-19 pandemic.