COVID-19 March 24, 2020 - 10:00 a.m.

Universal Masking

The health and safety of our patients, visitors, Associates and our communities remain of utmost importance. Beginning Monday, April 6, patients and visitors will be required to bring their own mask to wear while in our hospitals or outpatient clinics. You can learn more about how to make your own cloth masks by visiting the CDC website. Our health professionals providing care for presumed COVID-19 or known COVID-19 patients are expected to wear N95 respirator masks. Hospitalized patients do not have to wear a mask while in their rooms.

March 24, 2020 - 10 a.m.

CHRISTUS-Shreveport Bossier Health System Updates Visitor Guidelines

Under the guidelines of the Louisiana Department of Health and Governor Bel-Edwards CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System will be implementing updated guidelines for visitors and screening at our facilities.

Beginning March 24, no visitors will be allowed in our hospital facilities except those essential to patient care (with few exceptions, outlined below). Essential visitors are visitors that are required to accompany the patients for vital care or communication needs. Additionally, all persons entering CHRISTUS facilities will continue to be screened and receive a temperature check, and must enter through designated entrances.

• Adult Hospital & Outpatient Visitors: No visitors are permitted at this time
• Labor & Delivery Patients: One support person only (no changing out)
• NICU & Pediatric Patients: One parent or guardian may visit on any given day
• End of Life Care: Exception will be made by Nursing Administration for clergy and family on a case by case basis
• Patients Undergoing Outpatient Procedures or Testing with Sedation: No visitors. Patients can be dropped off at one of the two designated entrances. Patients will give contact information to hospital team of a support person to contact with patient status or that patient is ready for discharge.

CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center

As a reminder, all entrances to the hospital campus will be closed and locked. Any essential visitor and all employees and medical staff must access the building at these locations:

• Main Entrance (5 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday - Friday)
• West Wing (24/7)

To safely regulate access to patient care areas within our hospital as well as off-site patient care areas, visitor screening stations will be placed throughout the campuses. All persons, including visitors, patients, Associates and medical staff, entering the facility will undergo a mandatory temperature check. Depending on the screening outcome, appropriate protocols will be implemented.

In addition to these two external entrance visitor screening locations, the following locations at our patient care areas will also have a visitor screening station:

CHRISTUS Cancer Treatment Center

• Our CHRISTUS Cancer Treatment Centers are limiting visitors to essential caregivers. Visitor screening stations are set up at the main entrance during operational hours. The Cancer Center is not allowing visitors in chemotherapy or radiation areas at this time.

CHRISTUS Bossier Emergency Center

• The CHRISTUS Bossier Emergency Hospital is following the ER guidelines and is not allowing visitors at this time.

CHRISTUS Coushatta Health Center

• CHRISTUS Coushatta Health Center has two main entrances for patients and essential visitors.
• The main lobby entrance is open from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with a visitor screening station. The Emergency Room is following the ER guidelines.
• CHRISTUS Coushatta outpatient locations will only have one entrance with a visitor screening station in place during operating hours. Those clinics include CHRISTUS Coushatta Dental Clinic and the CHRISTUS Coushatta Clinics in Boyce and Ringgold.

We want to be perfectly clear – CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System remains a safe place for all to receive quality care. While COVID-19 is new, our processes and procedures in place for infection prevention and preventing the spread of illness are not. From physicians and nurses, quality and safety experts to those responsible for ordering supplies and keeping the hospital clean — all our Associates are involved in making sure we provide a safe environment for our patients and their families, our Associates and this community we serve.

March 16, 2020 - 11:50 a.m.

CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System Updates Hospital Visitor Guidelines

The Louisiana Department of Health and Governor Bel-Edwards announced they will now require all licensed health care facilities in the state to restrict visitors to those deemed essential, vital or necessary for the care and well-being of our patients.

CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System wants to assure the people of this community who trust in us for their health care that we are prepared and stand ready to care for our community. Because our goal is to ensure our hospital continues to be a safe place to receive care, we are following the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals guidelines and implementing temporary visitation restrictions. The goal of these updated visitor procedures is to limit the risk of exposure to our patients, visitors, Associates, physicians and volunteers.

Visitors will be guided to a designated entrance and restricted to one person per patient, with the following guideline:

• Isolation Patients: 1 Visitor
• Surgery Patients: 1 Visitor
• Same Day Procedure: 1 Visitor
• Critical Care: 1 Visitor
• Medical-Surgical Units: 1 Visitor
• Labor and Delivery: 1 Support + 1 Visitor
• Pediatrics: 1 Support + 1 Visitor
• NICU: Parents Only

To safely regulate access to patient care areas within our hospital as well as off-site patient care areas, visitor screening stations will be placed throughout the campuses. All visitors will be screened and receive a temperature check to make certain they do not fit a COVID-19 profile, based on CDC guideline. Depending on the screening outcome, appropriate protocols will be implemented.

CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center

All external entrances on the CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center campus will be locked weekdays, from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m. and on the weekends from 6:00 p.m. Friday until 7:00 a.m. on Monday except the West Wing entrance and ER public entrance until further notice. The West Wing and ER public entrances will be open 24/7 daily but require all visitors screen before entering.

In addition to these two external entrance visitor screening locations, the following locations at our patient care areas will also have a visitor screening station:

• Main Hospital Lobby at Admitting
• 1st Floor at the Internal Patio Door / Inpatient Rooms
• 2nd Floor just past Hospital Administration / Nursing Services
• Volunteer Desk across from the Chapel/Radiology
• Day Surgery/Cath Entrance

CHRISTUS Cancer Treatment Center

Our CHRISTUS Cancer Treatment Centers are limiting visitors to essential caregivers. Visitor screening stations are set up at the main entrance during operational hours. The Cancer Center is not allowing visitors in chemotherapy or radiation areas at this time.

CHRISTUS Bossier Emergency Center

The CHRISTUS Bossier Emergency Hospital is following the ER guidelines and is not allowing visitors for inpatients at this time.

CHRISTUS Coushatta Health Center

CHRISTUS Coushatta Health Center has two main entrances for patients and essential visitors.

The main lobby entrance is open from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. with a visitor screening station. The Emergency Room is following the ER guidelines.

CHRISTUS Coushatta outpatient locations will only have one entrance with a visitor screening station in place during operating hours. Those clinics include CHRISTUS Coushatta Dental Clinic and the CHRISTUS Coushatta Clinics in Boyce and Ringgold.

We want to be perfectly clear – CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System remains a safe place for all to receive quality care. While COVID-19 is new, our processes and procedures in place for infection prevention and preventing the spread of illness are not. From physicians and nurses, quality and safety experts to those responsible for ordering supplies and keeping the hospital clean — all our Associates are involved in making sure we provide a safe environment for our patients and their families, our Associates and this community we serve.

March 14, 2020

CHRISTUS Health Statement Regarding COVID-19

We continue to work in solidarity with our partners in the health care community, city and county leaders, and local health authorities to ensure our community is well prepared. Together, we stand united in our commitment to keep the people we serve safe.

At CHRISTUS, we remain vigilant in responding to this evolving situation, meeting throughout the day to ensure we are prepared to respond to present and potential future needs of our community. We continue to follow Centers for Disease Control guidelines for healthcare facilities located in areas, like ours, that are not experiencing community spread. We do have emergency preparedness plans in place and are fully prepared to execute as appropriate for our community circumstances.

CHRISTUS facilities remain a safe place for all to receive quality care. While COVID-19 is new, our processes and procedures in place for infection prevention and preventing the spread of illness are not. From physicians and nurses, quality and safety experts to those responsible for ordering supplies and keeping the hospital clean — all of our Associates are involved in making sure we provide a safe environment for our patients. Every single day.

March 12, 2020

With Governor Bel-Edwards’ declaration of a public health emergency in Louisiana, CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier Health System wants to assure the people of Shreveport-Bossier who trust in us for their health care, we are prepared and stand ready to care for our community. Alongside the North Louisiana health care community, we are united in our commitment to responding to the needs of all patients safely and effectively. 

Late on March 11, CHRISTUS Highland Medical Center in Shreveport received a presumptive positive result for a patient with COVID-19. Out of respect for our patient and in following HIPAA guidelines, we are limited in what we can share. We can say that we followed the CDC’s guidelines at all times, as well as the guidance we received from the Caddo Parish Health Department. We are firmly convinced that it was the diligence of our clinical caregivers and the excellent care they provided that helped identify this patient. Importantly, all CHRISTUS Associates utilized the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) and isolated this patient to protect our patients, Associates and community. Per CDC guidelines, the patient has been treated and released to home isolation.

We want to be perfectly clear – CHRISTUS Shreveport-Bossier remains a safe place for all to receive quality care. While COVID-19 is new, our processes and procedures in place for infection prevention and preventing the spread of illness are not. From physicians and nurses, quality and safety experts to those responsible for ordering supplies and keeping the hospital clean — all of our Associates are involved in making sure we provide a safe environment for our patients and their families, our Associates and this community we serve. 

We continue to follow the CDC’s guidelines for health care facilities, and our providers are working together non-stop and with authorities and our local health care community to prepare and respond when called upon. The CDC guidelines and our efforts are in place to ensure public health and to ensure our hospital is a safe place for all to receive care. 

Across CHRISTUS, we will continue our standard process of screening patients at our clinical points of access for relevant travel history, to assess for various evolving infectious disease risks, including this one. If a patient meets the CDC criteria, and is exhibiting symptoms consistent with the virus, we will isolate the patient in a private room and take proper respiratory precautions to safely assess and treat them without risk of transmission to other parts of the facility. We continue to remain vigilant in responding to this evolving situation, meeting daily to ensure we are prepared and continuing to follow CDC’s guidelines for patient isolation and cleaning.

We suggest that everyone follow the CDC guidelines regarding prevention and treatment of respiratory diseases such as COVID-19 and the flu. The best things anyone can do to prevent the spread of illness are:

1. wash your hands well before eating, drinking or touching your face 
2. get your annual flu shot and 
3. get a pneumonia shot if you have not already and are above the age of 65 or have diabetes or other illnesses that affect your heart or lungs.

In addition, we advise anyone who may be ill with fever and cough or shortness of breath and have had travel to any region that has known community spread of COVID-19, please contact your primary care provider before visiting their office so they can be sure to provide you with the best care possible while doing everything we can to keep our community healthy.

CHRISTUS Health Statement Regarding COVID-19

CHRISTUS values the importance of collaboration and coordinated action for the identification and care of those patients exhibiting signs of the COVID-19. Which is why we continue to follow CDC interim guidelines and work non-stop, in partnership with local, state and federal government authorities. We are fortunate to be part of a local health care community committed to responding to the needs of these patients in the safest manner necessary.

In the event that possible coronavirus patients need hospitalization after screening, we have identified a portion of our facility as the best place to allow us to isolate and safely care for any potential patients without risk of transmission to other parts of the facility.

At CHRISTUS, we have always screened patient to our clinical points of access for international travel, to assess for various evolving infectious disease risks, including this one.  If a patient meets the current CDC criteria, and is exhibiting symptoms consistent with the virus, we will isolate the patient in a private room and take proper respiratory precautions to safely assess and treat them 

If you are ill with fever and cough or shortness of breath and have had travel to any region that has known community spread of coronavirus, please contact your primary care provider before coming to the clinic so we can be sure to provide you with the best care possible while doing everything we can to keep our community healthy.

It’s still flu season. We continue to encourage all our patients and the community to practice good respiratory hygiene habits, like washing hands frequently and covering mouths while coughing especially during times like this where catching the flu is a far greater risk.
 

In summary, the best things you can do to prevent the spread of illness are:

1. Wash your hands well before eating, drinking, or touching your face
2. Get your annual flu shot and 
3. Get a pneumonia shot if you have not already and are above the age of 65 or have diabetes or other illnesses that affect your heart or lungs. 

CHRISTUS Health currently convenes daily, sometimes more, to check in on our emergency preparedness plans. We have had many hands on deck during this process. Nearly everyone — from physicians and nurses, quality and safety experts to those responsible for ordering supplies and keeping the hospital clean — is involved in making sure we can do best for our patients our Associates and this community we serve.

For the most up-to-date information regarding COVID-19 visit CDC.gov.