The Dominica China Friendship Hospital (DCFH) has updated its mask mandate for everyone visiting or working at the hospital. The matron of the hospital, Emmalyn Mathew, stated that this becomes necessary in view of the fact that COVID-19 is not completely eradicated from Dominica.
Mathew said that the core priority of the DCFH is to protect hospital patients, workers, and visitors from transmissible diseases of any kind, hence the need to reinstitute the mask mandate. Speaking at a media briefing organized by the Ministry of Health, she said the carnival season will witness the upsurge of visitors to Dominica and that everyone needs to be protected.
Face masks should be worn by all healthcare workers while present at the hospital and especially while involved in direct patient care. Visitors to the hospital are expected to wear a mask or facial covering while at the hospital and especially while in clinical spaces. All ambulance drivers, EMT’s, police officers should wear a mask while present at the hospital.
Emmalyn Mathew, Matron of the Hospital
The matron clarified that routine testing for COVID-19 is no longer applied to everyone visiting the hospital and that tourists to Dominica are also not tested before coming to the Island. She said this makes it critical for everyone to the wards and clinical areas to use face masks or face coverings. She added that people are no longer allowed to visit patients at the COVID-19 Isolation Unit which is now used for patients with communicable diseases.
She also stated that family members visiting their loved ones on admission at the hospital can drop off their supplies with nurses instead of taking them inside directly to patients. She said this is the only way to protect everyone during the carnival season.
We recognize that during this season much like during the Independence and Christmas activities, relatives will be coming in from all over the world, but our priority is to protect both visitors and patients alike.
Emmalyn Mathew, Matron of the Hospital
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