Penn Medicine adjusts visitor policy amid COVID-19 outbreak
PHILADELPHIA - In an effort to contain and control the spread of COVID-19, Penn Medicine has adjusted their visitation policy at hospitals and outpatient facilities.
Penn says no visitors will be permitted at inpatient facilities, except under special circumstances. These exceptions include the following:
- Visitation of a patient near the end of life
- Parent visitation of a child in our intensive care nurseries
- One coach or partner for each patient on our labor and delivery units
- One visitor at a time for patients in inpatient hospice units
- One parent at a time for pediatric patients
- One visitor to accompany patients for hospital discharge
Additionally, for all outpatient appointments one visitor will be permitted to accompany a patient to facilitate care or treatment such as an ambulatory visit, procedure or same-day surgery.
No children under the age of 12 will be permitted as a visitor.
Penn says permitted visitors are subjected to a health screening.
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THE ILLNESS
For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.
The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover.
WHAT WE DON’T KNOW
The Department of Health is giving few details about patients. It is not saying how many samples it is testing, how many negative tests it has taken or how many people it is monitoring under quarantine. It is also not saying where precisely someone traveled when they were exposed.
At least three medical personnel who treated people who tested positive have also been quarantined, newspapers have reported.
The map below illustrates where confirmed cases of the COVID-19 virus exist across the world. See mobile version here.
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