Beacon Health lifts restriction of two visitors per patient as respiratory illnesses decline

Camille Sarabia, South Bend Tribune
Updated ·1 min read
Memorial Hospital as seen from a parking lot just to its south, near the roundabout at Main and Michigan Streets, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. Most of two city blocks south of the hospital are slated to be redeveloped with new apartments, a hotel and retail space.
Memorial Hospital as seen from a parking lot just to its south, near the roundabout at Main and Michigan Streets, on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. Most of two city blocks south of the hospital are slated to be redeveloped with new apartments, a hotel and retail space.

SOUTH BEND — Beacon Health System has lifted its patient visitation restriction, which previously limited patients to two visitors at a time.

Beacon Health System released this statement, lifting the restriction on March 19, stating, "Fortunately, there has been a decline in recent weeks in the number of patients with respiratory illness in our communities. We feel we can safely welcome more visitors in our hospitals at this time if we continue masking protocols that help us prevent the spread of flu and other respiratory illnesses."

The amended visitation policy applies to all five Beacon hospitals: Beacon Granger Hospital, Community Hospital of Bremen, Elkhart General Hospital, Memorial Hospital of South Bend and Three Rivers Health.

The visitation restriction was initially put in place in December 2023 due to a spike in flu and COVID-19 hospitalizations. Dr. Michelle Bache, vice president of medical affairs at Elkhart General Hospital, stated at the time that Beacon facilities saw a 200% increase in influenza patients within a week.

Beacon continues to maintain its masking policy ensuring that anyone interacting with hospitalized patients will need to wear a mask until further notice.

Email Tribune staff writer Camille Sarabia at csarabia@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Two visitors per patient policy lifted at Beacon hospitals