Ketchikan’s local hospital is restricting visitors and posting security by entrances as it prepares for the coronavirus pandemic.
“Other entrances will be locked,” PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center wrote in a Thursday afternoon news release.
The provider says it’ll consider exceptions on a case-by-case basis, but hospital officials encourage loved ones to consider virtual visits via video calls.
The hospital will still accept emergency room patients who don’t present life-threatening conditions at its main entrance between 6:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m., the provider said.
After that, the main entrance will close. The hospital will take after-hours emergency patients via the ambulance entrance at Carlanna Lake Road. Guards will ask patients screening questions and take their temperature before they enter.
PeaceHealth says patients with urgent needs — like heart issues — should still immediately seek emergency care
The provider also said it would restrict its clinic to people with scheduled appointments. Those without appointments, especially those with a fever or cough, must call ahead to ensure they don’t infect others.
The hospital also said it would cancel elective surgeries. Shortly after PeaceHealth sent out its release, state officials banned elective surgeries statewide.
