Countess of Chester Hospital announce range of changes as they ‘deal with and adapt to the unprecedented challenges’

Moving forward, we will be providing emergency operative procedures only, together with management of cancer patients for whom it is absolutely necessary to ensure appropriate care. It is important that we do this to enable us to free up staff, free up capacity, and enable alterations to our bed base as necessary to accommodate large numbers of unwell patients.

We are also ceasing face to face outpatient consultations unless there is a compelling, safety-critical need for a physical visit to the site, at the discretion of the specialist team concerned. We are instead enabling virtual consultations for patients wherever possible, and will be communicating this to those patients affected.

CHANGES TO VISITING

If you are visiting loved ones at the Countess of Chester Hospital, please consider this advice:

If you are healthy, visiting is restricted to essential visitors only, such as parents or carers of a young (paediatric) patient, an affected patient’s main carer or if a close relative is terminally ill.

· Please do not be alarmed if medical staff are wearing protective equipment, this is to protect themselves as well as our patients and to help to minimise the spread of the virus.

· You may be asked to leave if certain procedures are being carried out.

· Visiting is restricted to one visitor per patient.

· You are not permitted to take any photographs of staff or hospital premises without prior consent.

CHANGES TO MATERNITY SERVICES
Important Information if you are pregnant, having your baby, or have recently had a baby with our maternity service.

If you have any concerns about appointment availability or you have a dry cough or a fever please call the helpline 01244 365028 and we can advise you on how to manage your symptoms and make sure you are cared for.

To help reduce the virus from spreading, we have decided to suspend the following services:

· 36 week birth choice appointments with community midwives
· Parent Education classes
· Confident birth sessions
· Early bird sessions

We will continue to provide home visits on the first day following discharge and then on day 5 and day 10. Further visits may be arranged depending on your individual care plans.

If you are self-isolating, we will provide telephone consultations with a midwife and follow-up arrangements will be made according to your own needs.

We are restricting visiting to birth partners/companions only. Visiting times will remain unrestricted.

These measures have been put in place to help to protect the safety of mothers and babies by reducing the chance of the spread of COVID 19. Do not hesitate to call us on our helpline if you are worried or have any questions. Please be reassured that we will provide care that is essential to mothers and babies throughout this challenging situation.

CHANGES TO THE EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

At this difficult time we ask parents, where possible, to avoid bringing their children to the Emergency Department and to seek advice from their GP or NHS 111 instead.

As a result, you may be asked to bring your child to the hospital. In this situation, we are planning that from Monday 23rd March, some children will be seen in a separate area away from the main Emergency Department.