(WXYZ) — The Detroit Medical Center announced new visitor guidelines at all facilities, including the Children’s Hospital of Michigan, due to the reported rise in flu cases in Michigan.
“Flu cases have been increasing across the United States,” said Dr. Teena Chopra, MPH, Corporate Medical Director of Infection Prevention and Hospital Epidemiology and Antibiotic Stewardship for Detroit Medical Center, and professor of infectious diseases at Wayne State University, in a news release. “According to the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, Michigan influenza activity is also now increasing rapidly. In this period of increased influenza activity in the community, we made these changes for the safety and care of our patients.”
According to a news release from the DMC, the new guidelines are as follows:
· All patients are allowed up to two visitors at any one time.
· Visitors ages 12 and under, including siblings and other relatives, will not be allowed on inpatient hospital floors or in the observation units.
· Visitors ages 13 and over who have a fever, cough or rash are asked to choose another time to visit. This applies to both private and semi-private rooms. If hospitals have policies that are more restrictive than the proposed guidelines, they will continue to use them.
· Visitors who exhibit illness or cold symptoms are encouraged to visit during a period of wellness.
To read the full visitor guidelines, click here.
Last week, Corewell Health announced that it is now limiting the number of visitors at pediatric units for three of its hospitals in Southeast Michigan due to an increase in respiratory illnesses.
