Extra safety measures in place as ban lifts

VCU Health has resumed non-emergency (elective) surgeries and procedures for children and adults as well as in-person clinic visits. 

“We never stopped providing life-saving care at our hospitals, such as transplants, trauma surgeries or cancer care,” said Dr. Ron Clark, interim CEO of VCU Hospitals and Clinics.

“For weeks, we worked on a roadmap to resume elective surgeries and postponed procedures, with safety as our top priority. This plan is now activated, and we are in the process of re-introducing services gradually.”

We've taken these steps to keep you safe  

• We are testing every patient for COVID-19 before undergoing surgery, so our teams can take the proper safety measures to care for them and keep others safe. In addition, we are testing all patients before admission to the hospital.
   
• We continue using telehealth for patient appointments and to communicate with patients both before and after their surgery.

• We are piloting drive-thru pre-operative testing for surgery patients next week to reduce the amount of time spent in public waiting areas.  

• We screen everyone for coronavirus symptoms at our entrances and encourage everyone who enters our facilities to wear a mask. If you do not have one, we will provide one. 
   
• We have extra hand-washing stations, robust cleaning and disinfecting protocols for our rooms and equipment, and protocols for treating patients with coronavirus symptoms in designated areas to minimize the spread of COVID-19.

Some postponed surgeries already taking place

We are already performing select surgeries and procedures for cancer, infection and neurological conditions that were delayed due to COVID-19 and are urgently needed.

Our hospitals and emergency rooms are clean and safe -- don't postpone care

Emergency rooms across the United States are seeing a decrease in visits due to fears of the virus. Paralleling a national trend, from March 20 - April 20, VCU Medical Center saw a 37% decline in patients seeking emergency care for stroke compared to the same time last year. Delaying care can put you at risk of further damaging your health.

“It is safe to come to the hospital. It is not safe to ignore symptoms that are problematic,” Clark said.

Please watch this pre-recorded webinar

For more information, please watch this one-hour conversation, recorded May 15, which features a panel of health and business experts and leaders discussing the impact of COVID-19 on the business community and considerations for determining how and when employees return to the workplace.