Coronavirus (COVID-19) Advice & Information for Patients

Steps we have taken

Rutherford Health will continue to ensure we navigate these challenging circumstances with everyone’s health and well-being in mind and we have taken the following steps to create a safe environment in all our centres.

We have taken the below measures:

• Enhancing the frequency of deep cleaning and handwashing.
• Adding more hand cleaning/sanitiser points that we ask patients to use.
• Ensuring that all our team members are following appropriate protocols to protect the health of our team and patients.
• Regulating the numbers of staff in centres –we would encourage patients to minimise the number of people they bring with them.
• Relatives are asked to wait in their cars unless it is identified that they need to accompany the patient, this is to reduce the number of people in our centres at any one time.
• Managing appointment/treatment times to minimise risk and contact between patients. This may mean that individual appointments could be changed to quieter times in the evening.
• Monitoring the situation daily and updating procedures to ensure we can complete treatments for each patient. This may mean that we might have to move patients to another centre if the situation requires.
• Ongoing monitoring of cleaning practices – patients will be asked to ensure they follow the guidance and instruction in all our centres.
• Keeping patients informed of the situation in our centres and regarding their treatments as the situation continues.
• Continuing to work with local partners to ensure services and emergency support is maintained in the centres.
• Maintaining operational capacity, and supporting the NHS as the situation continues.

What we can do to support patients:

• Assist with the provision of transport in and out of our centres to help patients avoid public transport.
• Arrange local accommodation if required.
• Continue to provide patient support services as required.
• Move patients between centres to ensure treatments are maintained.
• Provide treatments at home if possible and preferred.
• If patients are elderly or have contraindications, or are generally concerned about proximity to others, we will make appropriate arrangements if sitting in our main waiting area is not a preferred option.

Guidelines:

We will be following updated guidance on a daily basis and will continue to develop our working practices as appropriate.

We would like to encourage all Rutherford patients and families to visit the NHS England or NHS Wales websites for the most recent advice regarding coronavirus (COVID-19).