So we can keep everyone at the hospice safe, patients staying on our wards are limited to having two visitors per day. If there is a reason why more than two people should visit in a day, please speak to ward staff about this and we’ll do our best to help.
Please do come and visit the hospice during our visiting hours but please take some precautions before doing so.
Lateral flow testing
COVID-19 remains a serious risk to the safety of our patients, staff and volunteers. Before visiting the hospice and our patients, please take a lateral flow test each day that you plan to visit the hospice. If the result is negative, please come for your visit. If the test is positive, make an appointment for a PCR test, or use a postal PCR test. You must self-isolate until you receive a negative PCR test result. If the PCR result is positive, continue to self-isolate as per government guidance.
Please use this link for information about LFD tests, to order free packs of tests and find information about booking PCR tests: Order coronavirus (COVID-19) rapid lateral flow tests – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) https://www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests
You may be asked to provide evidence of the negative lateral flow test result when you get to the hospice. You can do this by either taking a photo of your test result or by providing a copy of the text or email sent to you by GOV.UK.
We know that for a person who is very ill, the presence of family and friends is supportive and welcome and we would like to ensure we remain as open as we can be ensuring we are individualised in our approach to each person we care for, while putting in place measures to prevent any possible spread of COVID-19.
As restrictions continue to ease in the coming months, we aim to remove all limits to visitors to the hospice and extend the visiting hours beyond those above.
Please also take into consideration that we care for COVID-19 positive patients on site.
Arriving at the hospice
Before you enter the hospice, you will be asked to wash your hands for at least 20 seconds using soap and water at the sink by the main entrance. Please also use the alcohol gel provided when entering the ward areas or in patient rooms.
When entering the hospice, you must wear a face covering (or a surgical mask which is required whilst visiting our wards) for the whole time you are in the building. If you haven’t brought one with you, we may be able to give you a single use mask. If you do not wear a mask, you will not be able to visit the patient and will be asked to leave. We may also ask you to wear gloves and an apron during your visit to ensure we reduce any risk of infection spreading.
When you arrive at reception, the receptionist will ask you to sign in and complete a screening questionnaire. This is important as we are asking you to confirm that you do not have any symptoms of COVID-19, and have not been in contact with another person who is symptomatic of COVID-19. You will also be asked to confirm that you have had a negative lateral flow test the day of your visit.
It is very important that you do not come to the hospice if you have the any of the following symptoms:
- A high temperature of over 37.8 degrees – you feel hot to touch on your chest or back
- A new, continuous cough – this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or three or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
- Loss or change to your sense of smell or taste.
Please ensure you keep ‘one metre plus’ away from other people. You may be asked to follow one-way systems to help us all stay apart. If social distancing cannot be maintained in our ward areas, you may be asked to visit at another time.