Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control

23 PATIENT & CAREGIVER EXPERIENCE Physician viewpoint: COVID-19 visitor restrictions may hurt more than they help By Mackenzie Bean V isitor restrictions intended to limit the spread of COVID-19 in hospitals could "inadvertently harm patients more than the virus itself," two physician leaders wrote in an op-ed for e Philadelphia Inquirer. e op-ed's authors are: • Amol Navathe, MD, PhD, co-director of the Healthcare Transformation Institute and assistant professor of medicine and health policy at the University of Pennsyl- vania in Philadelphia. • Joshua Liao, MD, director of the Value & Systems Science Lab and associate professor of medicine at the University of Washington in Seattle. Family and friends often play a critical role in helping patients navigate care, said Drs. Navathe and Liao, citing their own practice experience in hospitals. These visitors not only provide physicians with crucial information about a patient's prior health status, they also offer a second set of eyes to notice changes in the patient's condition, they said. Some patients with severe COVID-19 infections may become emotionally overwhelmed and have dif- ficulty processing information involving medical decisions. Family and friends can act as "trusted decision-making partners and advocates" for these patients, the au- thors said. These loved ones can also help patients heal and recover. To maintain these benefits, the physicians recommended hospitals tailor their visitor policies based on medical illness, visitor type and local COVID-19 case burden. ey could also add safety precautions, such as prescheduling visitors or rotating them throughout the day, the physicians said. "ese measures are not meant to return hospitals to pre-COVID policies. Caution will be required for some time," Drs. Navathe and Liao wrote in the op-ed. "Hospitals should nonetheless ensure that in attempt- ing to reduce COVID-related harm, visitor policies don't cause more harm through reduced safety, suboptimal decision-making and poorer recovery in the hospital." n COVID-19 survivors identify 98 lingering effects By Anuja Vaidya M embers of the COVID-19 sup- port group Survivor Corps have dubbed themselves "long-haul- ers" and identified 98 symptoms that they continue to experience. For a report from Indianapolis-based Indiana University School of Medicine, researchers and Survivor Corps surveyed about 1,500 members of the support group's Facebook page who said they suffer from long-term symptoms of COVID-19. They were asked about the symptoms they are having. Members of the group reported 98 symp- toms, with the largest number of members reporting fatigue, muscle or body aches, shortness of breath, difficulty concen- trating and the inability to exercise or be active. About 26 percent of the respondents reported headaches, joint pain and per- sistent chest pain. n New Mexico hospital violated patient rights with 'informal' COVID-19 testing policy, CMS probe finds By Molly Gamble A CMS investigation found Lovelace Women's Hospital in Albuquer- que profiled pregnant Native American women for COVID-19 testing and separated them from their newborns without ade- quate consent until test results came back, according to New Mexico In Depth and ProPublica. CMS launched its investigation after New Mexico In Depth and ProPubli- ca reported June 13 that the hospital was targeting Native American mothers for COVID-19 testing based on tribal-area ZIP codes and sepa- rating them from their newborns until test results became available. Lovelace officials told CMS the practice was halted May 28. They have defended their actions, noting test shortages and conflicting advice during the coronavirus crisis. Investigators concluded that the hospital's "informal policy to target patients that live on Native American reservations for COVID testing" failed to protect patients' rights, and that Lovelace did not provide clear options for the profiled patients to request or refuse COVID-19 testing and separation from their babies. The investigation also found the ZIP code testing protocol was in place at Lovelace's emergency department in addition to its labor and delivery and perinatal care units. Hospital officials submitted a plan to address the problems identified by CMS, including internal audits to ensure compliance with state and federal regulations and COVID-19 screening guidance, New Mexico In Depth and ProPublica reported. CMS has referred its findings to HHS' Office for Civil Rights. n

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