Or download the printable version here.
Updated Dec. 21
Niagara Health welcomes visitors to our sites to support the care of your loved ones.
These guidelines are in place for everyone’s safety and must be followed.
We appreciate your cooperation during the COVID pandemic.
Inpatient visiting policy
- Only one visitor per patient is allowed during designated visiting hours (11 a.m. – 3 p.m., 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.)
- Visitors must stay in the room with your loved one for the duration of your visit.
- Only leave the unit you are visiting if you are prepared to conclude your visit.
- Visitors cannot enter a unit in outbreak. Speak with the unit manager for exceptions for compassionate reasons.
To reduce the number of people entering the hospital, visitors are unable to rotate throughout the allotted time. It is recommended that each inpatient’s family and friends agree to a visitation schedule in advance to ensure patients only have one visitor throughout each time block.
Visitation policy for clinic visits, day surgery and other outpatient services
Patients coming for clinic visits, day surgery and other outpatient services should come alone. This includes Diagnostic Imaging (e.g. X-rays, CT scans), the Walker Family Cancer Centre and Dialysis Units. Team members will assist patients as needed. In special circumstances, the unit or clinic manager may approve a support person to accompany a patient to an outpatient clinic appointment. Any exception to the visitor restrictions must be approved in advance by the manager
Emergency Department (ED)/Urgent Care Centre (UCC) visitor policy
Visitors/care providers may only accompany patients in the ED or UCC if they are supporting patients:
- in life altering circumstances.
- experiencing a mental health crisis.
- at end of life.
- who are vulnerable. This includes those under 18 years of age, cognitive or developmentally delayed, and those with severe language impairment.
At triage, the nursing staff will assess whether the visitor/support person may accompany a patient in the ED/UCC based on the special circumstances outlined above.
Masking
Visitors must wear a mask properly (over the nose, mouth and chin) and at all times while inside the hospital. This includes: all public spaces, including elevators and waiting room areas, patient rooms, whether private or shared and in the presence of a healthcare worker.
Hygiene and physical distancing
Visitors must maintain a safe physical distance of six feet (two metres) from others and follow guidelines that limit the number of people in rooms, elevators, waiting rooms and other common areas. Please remember to wash your hands at every opportunity and especially before you enter the unit or patient room and as you leave the room/hospital.
Food and drink
To avoid removal of masks, eating and drinking by caregivers/ support persons/ visitors is not allowed in patient rooms, waiting rooms or on units. Any food brought in by caregivers/ support persons/ visitors for patients must be individually packaged and not shared. Leftovers must be discarded.
Our staff are unable to deliver food to patients. Only eat in designated cafeteria areas and while six feet (two metres) away from others. If you are purchasing food at the hospital, only do so before or after your visit.
Gifts
Any gifts for patients must be individually packaged. Our staff are unable to deliver gifts to patients. Please bring them with you during visiting hours.
Accessing the hospital
There are limited entrances to our sites. All inpatient visitors are asked to enter through the main entrance of each site, with the exception being visitors at the Port Colborne Site and Douglas Memorial Site using the Urgent Care Centre entrance.
Limited exceptions
- Compassionate reasons.
- Patients on the Paediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care units may have one visitor.
- Women in labour may have one support person at all times. In addition, if patients have a doula supporting them, this person may attend the birth as part of the care team.
- Other exceptions as determined by the care team. Please contact the manager on the unit where the patient is staying.
Compassionate entry for travellers and limited release from quarantine
If you’re coming from out of country to visit a loved one in the hospital for compassionate reasons, please visit the Government of Canada website here for more information.
Visitors coming to Niagara Health must:
Be 16 years of age or older.
Pass screening.
Provide name and phone number to staff to support contact tracing.
Not bring food or drink into the hospital for their own consumption.
Bring their own mask and wear it mask at all times while in the hospital.
Maintain a safe physical distance of six feet (two metres) from others.
Wash their hands at every opportunity, especially before entering the unit or patient room.
Not bring food or drink into the hospital for their own consumption.
Download a printable version of our visitor guidelines here.
