Centra is implementing new visitation and employee procedures in light of continuing coronavirus concerns. Effective today, visitation to any Centra facility is limited to healthy adults, and anyone under age 15 will be asked to leave. In addition, no more than two visitors are permitted at any time to any patient. The health care provider is is now cancelling all employee business travel – domestic and international – until further notice. As for personal travel, if any Centra caregivers go to or have recently been to countries considered high-risk, they must self-quarantine for 14 days. In addition, Centra is cancelling meetings of 40 or more people at all of its facilities. Centra is based in Lynchburg; its facilities include Bedford Memorial Hospital.
NEWS RELEASE: Centra is closely monitoring the outbreak of COVID-19 (Coronavirus). Cases of COVID-19 are being reported in a growing number of countries internationally, including the United States, with confirmed cases across the Commonwealth. There have not been any confirmed cases of COVID-19 in any of our facilities or in the greater Central Virginia community. However, in preparation, Centra has instituted several conservative measures for Centra caregivers as well as our community in preventing the transmission in our facilities and beyond.
Centra has developed a COVID-19 Task Force, that includes 55 individuals across the system in various roles . Some members of this task force are also part of the COVID-19 Incident Command
team (HICS). This team meets daily, reviewing the current situation and acting accordingly. All COVID-19 decisions are coming through these teams. Visitation Restrictions Centra implemented flu visitation restrictions due to the uptick of confirmed flu cases presenting within our system in January 2020. Due to the Coronavirus, and other equally dangerous communicable illnesses
within our community, we have updated those restrictions, which are effective immediately.
•Visitation is limited to healthy adults
•Do not visit if you are sick, have a fever, cough, runny nose, sore throat, headache, muscle or joint pain
•For protection of children and patients, visitation will be restricted to individuals 15 years of age and older (visitors under the age of 15 will be asked to leave)
•No more than two visitors at a time per patient
These visitation restrictions will impact all Centra hospitals, nursing homes and the Centra Alan B. Pearson Regional Cancer Center. Preventing transmission of any infectious disease is
imperative to keep our patients and caregivers safe.
International & Domestic Travel Restrictions for Centra Employees
•In an overabundance of caution, Centra is prohibiting any business -related travel both international and domestic.
•Centra has instituted a “Travel Furlough” policy for caregivers. If Centra employees travel or have recently traveled to countries where the CDC has designated level 2 or 3, or the State Department has enacted levels 3 or 4, they must notify Employee Care Services immediately and follow the guidelines for self-monitoring and quarantine. This policy states employees must stay home for a period of 14 days upon return and seek medical attention if they begin experiencing fever, coughs, or difficulty breathing.
•Caregivers considering personal travel to those countries should have exceptional reasons to travel.
•Although Centra cannot prohibit personal travel, we strongly discourage all travel (both domestic and international) for non-essential purposes, particularly that by air, to large gatherings, and to areas experiencing high numbers of COVID-19 cases, as documented by the CDC.
Also, effective immediately, in-person meetings that include 40 or more individuals will be prohibited on Centra property as large gatherings can cause accelerated transmission. We are asking our caregivers and members of the community who interact with Centra to use video conferencing or phone meetings when possible. We are setting strict policies and regulations around onsite vendors as well.
