UL Hospitals is extending its general evening visiting times from October 12 next in response to patient feedback.
In University Hospital Limerick (UHL), Ennis Hospital, Nenagh Hospital and Croom Hospital general evening visiting times will now be from 6pm to 9pm instead of 6.30pm to 8.30pm, an extension of one hour. General daytime visiting hours will remain as before, from 2pm to 4pm.
UL Hospitals encourages the presence and participation of visitors as family and friends provide important emotional support to patients and are invaluable as members of the care team.
To help further understand patients’ needs, UL Hospitals carried out a comprehensive survey. Results of the survey revealed that patients wanted extended visiting hours to make the hospital more accessible to their family and friends in the evening.
Speaking about the extended visiting times, UL Hospitals Chief Operations Officer Noreen Spillane said, “Our patients have told us that visiting times with friends & family is the most important part of their day, in particular evening visiting time. We have listened to this feedback and extended our evening visiting times in response to this wish.“
The survey also revealed that patients want visiting time balanced with quiet time to allow them an opportunity to rest and heal. Noreen Spillane advises, “In response to the need for quiet time, we would encourage families to co-ordinate their visiting times with other family members/friends so that they spread their visits across the visiting hours, patients may have up to two visitors at any one time.We would ask all visitors to please adhere to visiting times as this allows staff to provide the best possible care for patients and aids rest and recovery.”
“We will always work with our patients and families to develop a visitation plan which best suits their needs and depending on circumstances,” Ms Spillane said
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.