{"id":136421,"date":"2021-09-03T07:15:50","date_gmt":"2021-09-03T11:15:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=136421"},"modified":"2021-09-03T07:17:11","modified_gmt":"2021-09-03T11:17:11","slug":"hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Hospital suspends elective and non-essential services"},"content":{"rendered":"
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In an effort to keep our patients, staff and communities safe, Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre (SLBMC) is taking further measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be suspending elective and non-essential services at the hospital including surgeries and outpatient clinics.<\/p>

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This change will go into effect as of Monday September 13, until further notice.<\/p>

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\u201cPatients affected by this change are being contacted by our care team. We are thankful for everyone\u2019s understanding and appreciate the impact this is having on our communities. If patients are uncertain if their appointment is canceled we ask that you contact the hospital,\u201d said Dr. Albert Duncan, SLBMC Medical Director.<\/p>

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 <\/p>\n

\u201cThe measures we are announcing today are in keeping with the mitigation guidelines set out by the Ministry of Health to curb the spread of COVID-19 due to the fueling of cases by the Delta variant, and are intended to protect our team, our patients and the public, and most importantly, to manage what we expect may be tremendous demand on the system from spread of the virus,\u201d said Dr. Duncan.<\/p>

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 <\/p>\n

Patients will still have access to essential treatments such as cancer care, antenatal (high-risk) care, and kidney dialysis. Also, planned imaging procedures such as ultrasound, CTs and MRIs, will NOT be cancelled at this time, and the hospital will also continue to accept urgent physician referrals.<\/p>

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 <\/p>

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The Medical Director said, \u201cIf you already have an appointment at our Radiology Department, please show up for it. However, we are appealing to referring physicians to be mindful of the current situation and refer only urgent cases for imaging studies.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In addition to the clinics listed above, here are the exceptions:<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Lab\u2014 we will still provide outpatient services for the following patients who are\u2026<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. a) Immuno-compromised<\/li>\n
  2. b) Pregnant<\/li>\n
  3. c) Receiving cancer care<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Ophthalmology (Eye) Clinic<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    If a community member suspects they may have been exposed to COVID-19, they are asked to phone the COVID Hotline: 46-COVID (462-6843) for further instruction.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    You should only come to the hospital if your symptoms are severe or a health professional has advised you to do so.<\/p>\n

     <\/p>\n

    SLBMC will continue to monitor the spread of COVID-19 and adapt as necessary to provide a safe environment for our patients, staff and community.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    In an effort to keep our patients, staff and communities safe, Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre (SLBMC) is taking further measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be suspending elective and non-essential services at the hospital including surgeries and outpatient clinics.   This change will go into effect as of Monday September 13, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":130286,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-136421","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nHospital suspends elective and non-essential services - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hospital suspends elective and non-essential services\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In an effort to keep our patients, staff and communities safe, Sir Lester Bird Medical Centre (SLBMC) is taking further measures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and will be suspending elective and non-essential services at the hospital including surgeries and outpatient clinics.   This change will go into effect as of Monday September 13, […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Antigua News Room\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/antiguanewsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-09-03T11:15:50+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-03T11:17:11+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/P1944055.MP4.00_00_01_18.Still001.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@AntiguaNewsRoom\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Editor\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Editor\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#\/schema\/person\/36cac05ef6398fe56ae3e6317f8535c5\"},\"headline\":\"Hospital suspends elective and non-essential services\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-03T11:15:50+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-03T11:17:11+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\"},\"wordCount\":387,\"commentCount\":1,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/mlavawteztbj.i.optimole.com\/w:520\/h:293\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/P1944055.MP4.00_00_01_18.Still001-e1718929185635.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/hospital-suspends-elective-and-non-essential-services\/\",\"name\":\"Hospital suspends elective and non-essential services - 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