UL Hospitals Group has reminded the public of the Mid-West that the ban on visiting at its six hospital sites remains in place, to help protect the safety of our staff and patients during the ongoing Covid-19 public health emergency.
The visiting ban introduced in early March at Ennis Hospital, University Hospital Limerick, University Maternity Hospital Limerick, St John’s Hospital, Nenagh Hospital and Croom Orthopaedic Hospital is unaffected by the activation this week of Phase 1 in the five-phase reopening Ireland’s society and economy.
“UL Hospitals Group welcomes the beginning of emergence from the restrictions of the past two months. We regret the distress or inconvenience our visiting ban causes for patients and their loved ones, but it is necessary to keep the ban in place while the risk of a second wave of Covid-19 remains present. The reasons for limiting movement within our hospitals remain as urgent as they were when the visiting ban was introduced in early March – to minimise the risk of spreading the coronavirus infection among staff and patients within our health facilities, and also within the wider community,” the UL Hospitals Group said in a statement on Wednesday.
The only exceptions to the ban are as follows:
Parents visiting children in hospital
Birthing partners of women in the delivery ward only at University Maternity Hospital Limerick
People assisting confused patients (e.g. dementia)
People visiting patients who are critically unwell or at end of life (on a case-by-case basis)
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.