Mount Nittany Health puts visitor restrictions in place due to rising COVID-19 cases
Mount Nittany Health restricted visitors to all of its locations for an unspecified period of time because of community spread of the new coronavirus.
Inpatient visitors are not permitted, except for limited circumstances.
One caregiver may accompany patients of the emergency department, Mount Nittany Physician Group, the Cancer Care Partnership and outpatient hospital locations.
Some caregivers may be asked to find an alternative place to wait in certain circumstances, though it was not immediately clear what those circumstances may be.
The changes went into effect Friday. Those with questions about visitation should call 231-7000 or visit mountnittany.org.
“We respect and understand the need for patients to have loved ones near to support the healing process. In this environment, however, it’s imperative that we limit the number of people in our facilities, including visitors,” Chief Medical Officer Nirmal Joshi said in a statement. “We strongly encourage everyone to utilize other means of communication, such as phone calls, video chats on cell phones or other mobile devices. We are sensitive to the separation this restriction causes our patients and their loved ones, but we believe this measure of protection is essential at this time to keep everyone safe.”
Pennsylvania blew past its record Thursday for daily COVID-19 case increases, the third consecutive day the Keystone State set a daily record.
Centre County added 89 cases Thursday, its highest single-day tally since Saturday. Twenty-two patients are hospitalized in the Centre County, 18 of which are at Mount Nittany Medical Center.
This story was originally published November 13, 2020 at 9:05 AM.