VISITING HOSPITAL

All hospital visitors are recommended to wear a medical face mask. Expand this message for information about visiting hospital.

Last updated:
13 March 2023

Some visitor restrictions for all Te Whatu Ora Waitaha Canterbury hospitals and health facilities remain in place, but we have relaxed others.

There is still a heightened risk to vulnerable people in hospital and so we recommend all people wear a mask when visiting any of our facilities and follow other advice designed to keep patients, staff and  visitors safe.

To keep everybody safe:

  • Visitors or support people must not visit our facilities if they are unwell. Do not visit if you have recently tested positive for COVID-19 and haven’t completed your isolation period.
  • Patients may have more than one visitor, except in some situations such as multi-bed rooms where it can cause overcrowding.
  • Surgical/medical masks are recommended to be worn at all sites. Masks will be provided if you don’t have one.
  • For Specialist Mental Health Services everyone is strongly encouraged to wear a face mask in all inpatient areas and areas where consumers are receiving care (i.e. community appointments, home-visits, transporting people). Discretion may be applied in cases where masks impair your ability to communicate effectively.
  • Visitors must not eat or drink in multibed rooms because of the increased risk when multiple people remove their face mask in the same space.
  • Hand sanitiser is available and must be used.

Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding as our staff work hard to protect and care for some of the most vulnerable in our community.

Visiting patients with COVID-19

  • People can visit patients who have COVID-19 but they must wear an N95 mask – this will be provided if you don’t have one.
  • Other methods of communication will be facilitated e.g. phone, Facetime, Zoom, WhatsApp etc where visits aren’t possible.

All of our Hospitals

Visiting hours for our hospitals have returned to pre COVID-19 hours with the exception of Christchurch Women’s Hospital.

All visitors are recommended to wear a medical face mask.

Parents/caregivers are able to be with their child in hospital and visitors are now allowed, except for the Children’s Haematology and Oncology Day stay where just one parent/caregiver is able to attend their appointment with their child. Exceptions by special arrangement only.

Patients and visitors should also read the additional more detailed visiting guidelines for each specific hospital.

More COVID-19 information

Te Ara Whakapiri

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Te Ara Whakapiri (the unifying path): Principles and guidance for the last days of life

Quick-reference documents for clinicians caring for patients in their last hours or days of life:

For Prescribers:

Anticipatory prescribing flow charts for the five most common symptoms (what medications to prescribe and when/how to use them)

Pain Management Flowchart

Pain (with renal impairment)

Dyspnoea/breathlessness

Agitation/delirium/restlessness

Nausea/vomiting

Excessive respiratory tract secretions

For nurses/carers:

Baseline assessment and preparation for care after death (checklist)

Symptom management in the last days of life (guidelines including holistic care recommendations and the anticipatory prescribing flow charts, as above)

Ongoing care of the dying person – hospital setting (ACE chart to be completed each shift)

Ongoing care of the dying person – home setting (ACE chart to be completed each visit)

Staff signature sheet (for any staff completing Te Ara Whakapiri documentation)

Discharge checklist (when someone is being discharged home to die)

*Note: these documents were adapted from Te Ara Whakapiri: Principles and guidance for the last days of life (Ministry of Health, 2017) by the South Island Te Ara Whakapiri Workgroup, South Island Alliance, 2020

Other reference and resource documents from the MOH

Te Ara Whakapiri: Principles and guidance for the last days of life (comprehensive background document from the Ministry of Health, 2017

Te Ara Whakapiri: Toolkit (the set of clinical checklists, flowcharts, tools and patient resources to be used for individual patients at the end of life from the Ministry of Health, 2017)

NOTE: some of the resources in this toolkit have subsequently been updated for the South Island and will therefor differ slightly from the MOH documents. See the links above

Recognising the dying person (flow chart)

Medical management planning (general principles)

When death approaches (information sheet for carers)

Dying at home (information sheet for carers)

Bereavement risk assessment tool (checklist for staff)

Further information can be found on the Ministry of Health website: www.health.govt.nz/publication/te-ara-whakapiri-principles-and-guidance-last-days-life

Acknowledgements

Many thanks to the original MOH team for developing these Te Ara Whakapiri resources, as well as Dr Kate Grundy and the South Island Te Ara Whakapiri Workgroup who subsequently refreshed several of the documents.

South Island Te Ara Whakapiri Workgroup

Dr Kate Grundy (Chair), Jo Hathaway (Facilitator), Rose Blair, Steph Ash, Vicki Telford, Sinead Blee, Annie Wallace, Amanda Jennings, Nicky Featherstone, Jane Smith, Dr Louise Bremer, Sharon Stewart

Page last updated: 26 April 2024

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