Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas is reducing its visitation hours and changing some other rules around visits due to the COVID-19 surge.
The hospital's new visitation hours are now 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. daily.
To visit a family member, the person must be on an authorization list approved by Guest Services and staff at the lobby. Anyone not on the list trying to visit will not be allowed inside the hospital.
Only one visitor can be in a single-occupant patient room at a time, patients will only be allowed in the building they have an appointment in, and will not be able to go back and forth from buildings.
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Visitors will also not be able to wait in public areas or eat in patient rooms unless given permission by hospital staff.
Masks will be required for ALL visitors, anyone not wearing a mask will be asked to leave the hospital.
The only rules that remain flexible are end-of-life visits.
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In COVID-19 units, visiting hours will also be limited to 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. and visits will be limited to 30 minutes. An escort will bring the visitor to the unit and help the visitor with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) upon arrival to the patient room. The escort will advise the visitor when the 30 minutes are over and will help the visitor remove the PPE. All visitors will be escorted off the unit and returned to the lobby of the hospital.
Parkland leaders continue to encourage people to get vaccinated as more unvaccinated people are being hospitalized with the virus.
"It's simple, people need to get vaccinated because this surge in hospitalizations due to COVID-19 is preventable," said Joseph Chang, MD, Parkland's Chief Medical Officer. "I don't know what else to say. At this point, all the questions have been answered. The evidence is clear, and the evidence is indisputable."
Children 12 and older can get vaccinated without an appointment Wednesday through Saturday at the Ellis Davis Field House at 9191 S. Polk Street in Dallas. Minors must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Individuals can also choose to make an appointment to receive a COVID-19 vaccination at one of Parkland's Community Oriented Primary Care health centers by calling 214-590-7000 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. Pharmacies at Walmart, CVS, Walgreens, Kroger are also providing vaccines.
