Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Staff Reports

Albany, Ga. – Beginning today, Monday, June 14, Phoebe hospitals will implement an updated visitation policy. “We are grateful our COVID-19 numbers continue to decline, and we encourage anyone who has not yet been vaccinated to protect themselves and those around them by getting a shot, so we can end the pandemic,” said Dianna Grant, MD, Phoebe Putney Health System Chief Medical Officer. “We continue to review policies and procedures that were adopted at the height of the pandemic to see how we can safely move back to pre-COVID-19 standards. One of the most impactful to our community is the visitation policy. We know loved ones play an important role in the care and recovery of our patients, and we are committed to making visitation of hospitalized patients as easy and safe as possible,” Dr. Grant added.

Revisions to the hospital visitation policy include an expansion of visitation hours. The updated hours are as follows:

• • Phoebe North Campus:
    • Visiting for Non-COVID-19 patients: 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.
    • Visitation for COVID patients must be scheduled.
  • Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital: 7 a.m. – 7 p.m.
  • Phoebe Sumter Medical Center:
    • 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. (Weekdays)
    • 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. (Weekends)
  • Phoebe Worth Medical Center: 8 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Other key highlights of the visitation policy include:

• Patients undergoing surgery may have one visitor accompany them during their stay. Patients coming for an outpatient test or scan may have one visitor accompany them, if medically necessary.
• All visitors are required to wear a multi-layer mask at all times. A cloth or surgical mask will be available at visitor and patient entrances.
• Two visitors allowed at a time for each patient.
• Children under 18 still are not allowed to visit except in end-of-life cases and births of siblings.
• In emergency centers, one visitor is allowed in main waiting and treatment areas for each non-COVID-19 patient, as long as proper distancing can be maintained.

“We appreciate the community’s support and patience as we work to protect our patients and visitors. Safety is our top priority and we will continue to make modifications to the visitation policy as appropriate,” said Brandi Lunneborg, Phoebe Sumter Chief Executive Officer.

Also on Monday, the main entrance of Phoebe’s main hospital campus reopened after renovations to the Wetherbee Lobby were completed. Visitor registration kiosks, which will help make the visitor registration process more efficient, will be installed in the coming weeks.

To review Phoebe’s complete visitation policy, visit phoebehealth.com.