Visiting Hours at Allegheny General Hospital

Allegheny General Hospital has flexible visiting hours to help us meet the needs of both our patients and our visitors. We understand that having a loved one in the hospital is very stressful, and the support you provide the patient is very important in healing. Please help us keep our units comfortable and safe for all patients.

We respect the rights of all patients to choose who may visit them when they are an inpatient of the hospital. The hospital will not restrict, limit, or otherwise deny visitation privileges on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or disability. The hospital will ensure that all visitors enjoy full and equal visitation privileges consistent with patient preference.

Patients may choose with whom they communicate and who they will allow or not allow as visitors. Patients have the right (subject to their consent) to receive the visitors who they designate, including but not limited to, a spouse, a domestic partner (including a same-sex domestic partner), another family member or a friend, and have the right to withdraw or deny such consent at any time.

The hospital may impose clinically necessary or reasonable restrictions on a patient’s visitation rights when necessary to provide safe care to a patient or other patients. A Justified Clinical Restriction means any clinically necessary or reasonable restriction or limitation imposed by the hospital on a patient’s visitation rights when restriction or limitation is necessary to provide safe care to a patient or other patients. A Justified Clinical Restriction may include, but need not be limited to one or more of the following: (i) a court order limiting or restraining contact; (ii) behavior presenting a direct risk or threat to the patient, hospital staff or others in the immediate environment; (iii) behavior disruptive of the functioning of the patient care unit; (iv) reasonable limitations on the number of visitors at any one time; (v) patient’s risk of infection by the visitor; (vi) visitor’s risk of infection by the patient; (vii) extraordinary protections because of a pandemic or infectious disease outbreak; (viii) substance abuse treatment protocols requiring restricted visitation; (ix) patient’s need for privacy or rest; (x) need for privacy or rest by another individual in the patient’s shared room; or (xi) when a patient is undergoing a clinical intervention or procedures and the treating healthcare professional believes it is in the patient’s best interest to limit visitation during the clinical intervention or procedure.

If any patient of the hospital believes that his or her patient visitation rights have been violated, he or she may file a complaint using the hospital’s internal grievance system.

Suggested visitation hours for various patient units at Allegheny General Hospital are as follows:

Effective June 9, 2020

Patients can now have one visitor — a healthy support person.

We understand how important having a loved one around can be for a patient’s recovery, and we’re happy to welcome back that support. At the same time, our patients’ physical health remains a top priority, and some restrictions apply.

Please carefully review the policy below before visiting a patient at an AHN hospital.

A support person must:

• Be healthy and not have any symptoms of a respiratory illness.
• Accept screenings and provide a valid ID at the hospital entrance.
• Wear a mask at all times and limit travel outside of the patient’s room and waiting areas.
  • Please bring your own mask or one will be provided, if necessary.
• Be the dedicated support person throughout the patient’s hospital stay.
  • Visitors can not switch out.
• Keep the patient’s other family members and loved ones informed.
• Be 18 years of age or older.
• Visit only during dedicated hours, 9 a.m. – noon or 5 – 8 p.m. However, you may stay longer if you’re supporting:
  • A woman in labor or postpartum.
  • A patient under age 18.
  • A patient who is at end-of-life.
  • A patient with intellectual, developmental, or cognitive disabilities, communication barriers, or behavioral health concerns.

Special considerations

Our patients’ physical health remains our top priority, and special considerations apply for Coronavirus patients, other targeted clinical areas, and to support appropriate social distancing.

• Coronavirus: For everyone’s safety, no support person is allowed, except for at end-of-life. If at end-of-life, one support person will be assigned a seat in the waiting room to receive frequent updates from the care team.
• End-of-life: Two healthy support persons will stay in a waiting area that accommodates for social distancing.
• Intensive care, same-day surgery, and emergency trauma and surgery: One support person will be allowed to sit in our appropriate waiting areas to allow for social distancing.
• Labor and delivery: One healthy support person is allowed for the duration of the mom’s hospital stay — no switching out of visitors.
• Neonatal intensive care unit: Two healthy support people, one allowed at the baby’s bedside.
• Clergy visitation: This is an approved exception. A clergy member can visit a patient in addition to the dedicated support person.

While we know this policy has challenges, we hope you understand that it is in place for the safety of our patients, visitors, and staff. We encourage you to connect with loved ones through phone calls and video visits, and we’re happy to assist with that where we can.

At AHN, it’s safety first. Always.