Our new visiting guidelines after COVID-19

14/07/2022

At Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), we know that visits from family and friends are hugely important to the children and young people we care for.

Sadly, the need to protect people from COVID-19 has disrupted these visits for a long time.

Now, following new guidance from National Health Service England (NHSE), we are able to welcome more friends and family into the hospital once again, as long as we follow some simple precautions to protect our vulnerable patients from an outbreak of the virus.

Under our new visiting guidelines, patients can receive as many visitors as they could before the pandemic. Parents and carers are able to visit together and siblings are welcome too.

Safeguards

Some important safeguards remain and these are:

  • No one should visit the hospital if they feel unwell, and anyone who develops flu like symptoms while at the hospital should inform the ward and go home immediately.
  • Parents and family members visiting a communal ward will be encouraged to wear a Fluid Resistant Surgical Mask. These are provided by the hospital.
  • Fluid resistant surgical masks are optional for outpatient appointments, but again will be provided by the hospital.
  • The space we have available still limits the number of visitors we can accommodate. A maximum of two parents or carers may attend an outpatient appointment and while two parents or carers can accompany a patient to theatres, we ask that only one carer does so if possible.
  • Nursing staff on the wards need to complete a family assessment on every shift, by asking visitors a few simple questions about how they are feeling.

If you have questions or concerns about the new visiting guidelines, please contact your clinical team or our London office on telephone number  +44 (0)20 7762 6822 .

Access our news story GOSH’s new visitor guidelines bring families back together which summarises the key details.

Browse A-Z