Hospitals with the Strictest Visiting Hours

Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN · Aug 16, 2015

The strictest visiting hours I ever experienced was during the SARS outbreak of 2003 when we shut to visitors 100%. No one was allowed in.

And, honestly, it was Great! We could care for our pts without tiptoeing around visitors. We didn't have to explain ourselves over and over again, and didn't have to deal with the endless questions of " Dr Oz says this, or Oprah said that".

it was so nice to be able to focus 100% on the pts.

of course, working in full isolation gear, worrying about the threat of SARS etc was much worse.

OK. Flame away. I expect to be told that I am an awful nurse for enjoying not having to deal with visitors.

OrganizedChaos, LVN · Aug 16, 2015

The strictest visiting hours I ever experienced was during the SARS outbreak of 2003 when we shut to visitors 100%. No one was allowed in.
And, honestly, it was Great! We could care for our pts without tiptoeing around visitors. We didn't have to explain ourselves over and over again, and didn't have to deal with the endless questions of " Dr Oz says this, or Oprah said that".
it was so nice to be able to focus 100% on the pts.
of course, working in full isolation gear, worrying about the threat of SARS etc was much worse.
OK. Flame away. I expect to be told that I am an awful nurse for enjoying not having to deal with visitors.

Lol. This is probably why I love corrections so much. Zero family/visitors! Haha!

TheGooch · Aug 16, 2015

The strictest visiting hours I ever experienced was during the SARS outbreak of 2003 when we shut to visitors 100%. No one was allowed in.
And, honestly, it was Great! We could care for our pts without tiptoeing around visitors. We didn't have to explain ourselves over and over again, and didn't have to deal with the endless questions of " Dr Oz says this, or Oprah said that".
it was so nice to be able to focus 100% on the pts.
of course, working in full isolation gear, worrying about the threat of SARS etc was much worse.
OK. Flame away. I expect to be told that I am an awful nurse for enjoying not having to deal with visitors.

As a patient set visiting hours are great. Especially when the person you are sharing the room with has visitors at all hours. And what about small kids? There should also be an age limit.

IsabelK · Aug 16, 2015

I'm trying to remember, but I think 8 AM - 8 PM on the general units. ICU was 2 hours in the morning, 2 hours in the afternoon, 2 hours in the evening. All the places I worked at would let family stay overnight if the patient was in a private room. Usually it was one visitor, sometimes two. It also depended on the situation. I remember a few who were actively dying and we let everyone in who wanted to come (13 and up) for the night as long as they were quiet and respectful of the need to keep noise down. All of these families were just grateful to be able to say good-bye.