Vitalité Health Network adjusting to the return to Orange level in the Moncton region

Moncton, Thursday, November 19, 2020 – The transition to Orange level in Zone 1 (Moncton region), declared today by the provincial government, brings about a heightened alert level and a suspension of visits for both hospital facilities of Vitalité Health Network located in that area.

Visits prohibited

As of tomorrow, visits will be prohibited at the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre and Stella-Maris-de-Kent Hospital, EXCEPT in the following cases:

• Visits will be restricted to ONE DESIGNATED VISITOR per patient at the Obstetric, Pediatric and Intensive Care units and to TWO DESIGNATED VISITORS (one at a time) for Palliative Care (end-of-life) patients;

• As for patients who will receive medical assistance in dying, the presence of TWO DESIGNATED VISITORS will be allowed (one at a time), except in exceptional cases where one of the visitors would require assistance to go to the patient’s bedside.

Patient services adjusted as needed

In accordance with the provisions of the Orange level of New Brunswick's Recovery Plan, non-urgent medical interventions and elective surgeries will be authorized, but could be reduced temporarily based on how the situation evolves and on the spread of the virus in the community. “We are monitoring the situation closely and are ready to adjust our service offering if necessary,” stated Gisèle Beaulieu, Acting President and Chief Executive Officer of the Network.

For the moment, the Network is asking people in the Moncton region to present for their appointments at the scheduled date and time. In the event that certain services would be impacted, the Network will contact those directly affected to postpone their appointments to a later date.

Reduced traffic at emergency departments

The Network would like to underline that the emergency departments of the Dr. Georges-L.-Dumont University Hospital Centre and Stella-Maris-de-Kent Hospital are open for people who require emergency care and want to see a doctor. However, we ask that people whose health condition does not require urgent care make an appointment with their family doctor or nurse practitioner, visit a walk-in clinic or call Tele-Care (811).

Health care workers in preventive isolation

The Network confirms that four of its health care workers in the Moncton region are currently in preventive isolation due to a high-risk exposure to the virus.

The Network also reiterates the importance of Public Health measures to ensure everyone’s safety: respect distancing measures (two metres), wash your hands often and wear a mask.