The news follows the state’s decision to not renew coronavirus pandemic restrictions as those public health orders expired on Wednesday.
However, healthcare settings still have masks and social distancing requirements.
CDC guidelines state that ‘fully vaccinated persons may safely do most activities without a facial covering and without socially distancing. While unvaccinated individuals should continue to wear a mask, socially distance, avoid large gatherings, and whenever possible, be outside for activities and gatherings.”
CDC guidelines also recommend individuals still wear masks while travelling on public transportation (including airplanes), in health care settings (including hospitals, nursing homes, physician offices and clinics), and when they are in a business that chooses to require masks.
“Wearing a mask within any hospital facility or care site is vital in helping us maintain a high-standard of care,” said Dr. Paul Buchanan, chief clinical officer at Mercy Health.
In addition to that, those hospitals will allow one visitor at a time for patients with the coronavirus. They join a list of hospitals in an 11-county region to do so.
Prior to that decision, family members were generally not able to visit those type of patients. However, there will be slight differences how each hospital does coronavirus related visiting procedures and these approaches could change as hospitals learn what works.
That news comes from the Greater Dayton Area Hospital Association, in which Mercy Health is a member.
Sarah Hackenbracht, the CEO of that Association, said caregiving staff have done so much “but it’s still not the same as your family member or loved one being with you and holding your hand, or just simply sitting in the same room with you while you’re waiting on information.”
“This was the piece that the clinical teams felt very strongly about. They wanted to make sure that we could get some level of that family support back to these patients,” Hackenbracht said.
