Detroit Medical Center Adds Visitor Restrictions Amid Coronavirus

DETROIT, MI — Detroit Medical Center has put in place temporary visitor restrictions as the number of coronavirus cases in Michigan continues to soar.

The medical center on Thursday said that, for adult patients at DMC Harper University Hospital, DMC Heart Hospital DMC Huron Valley-Sinai Hospital, DMC Hutzel Women’s Hospital, DMC Detroit Receiving Hospital and DMC Sinai-Grace Hospital, one support person will be allowed to visit per day. They must be 18 or older, the center said.

Visiting hours are from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., 7 days per week.

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As patients and visitors enter the hospital, they will be asked screening questions, have their temperature taken, are required to wear a face mask, will be asked to sanitize their hands and must observe social distancing, according to a news release issued by the center.

Visitors for patients in procedural care, the Emergency Department, clinics and those undergoing out patient procedures, will wait in a designated COVID SAFE area, the hospital said. As is the case with inpatients, only one support person is allowed to visit. Visitors are not allowed for those hospitalized patients who test positive for COVID-19 or those who have symptoms.

Exceptions to the new policy will be handled on an individual basis under the guidance of the direct care team. The visitation policy at DMC Children’s Hospital of Michigan and the DMC Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan has not changed.

Michigan has seen a significant increase in coronavirus cases in recent weeks. Earlier on Thursday, health officials from the state of Michigan and three of the state's largest health systems held a virtual news conference warning residents of a recent surge in coronavirus cases that have also prompted increased pressure on hospitals across the state.

Health officials on Thursday announced that the state had broken its single-day record for new coronavirus cases, reporting nearly 7,000 cases on Thursday.