Novant sets respiratory virus youth visitor restrictions

The system covers Clemmons, Forsyth, Kernersville and Thomasville medical centers and Medical Park Hospital.

The restrictions for under age-13 visitors — unless they're seeking care or there are other special family circumstances — are aimed at reducing the spread of respiratory viruses that include COVID-19, influenza and RSV.

Meanwhile, masking remains optional for visitors.

“In all of the communities we serve, we are observing an increase in flu, COVID-19 and RSV cases,” said Dr. David Priest, Novant's chief safety and quality officer and an infectious diseases expert.

"We appreciate the community’s help in taking extra care when visiting our facilities this respiratory virus season as we work to protect our patients.”

In those special circumstance situations, parents are asked to work with the patient’s care team to make arrangements.

Those ages 13 years and older who are experiencing flu-like symptoms, such as a runny nose, sore throat, fever or cough, are asked to not visit patients being treated at area hospitals.

Those seeking treatment at hospitals are not subject to the restriction, but will be asked to wear a mask.

Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist and Cone Health tightened their visitor restrictions on Dec. 7.

For Baptist, it included its main Ardmore campus, as well as Brenner Children’s Hospital and in Bermuda Run, High Point, Lexington and Wilkesboro.

For Cone, it included Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro and Alamance Medical Center in Burlington.

Baptist and Cone have similar special circumstances and masking recommendations as Novant.

The systems are asking that patients seek care in emergency departments only if they are experiencing a serious or life-threatening illness or injury. 

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common virus that can cause severe infections in children and adults over age 60.

RSV symptoms typically include a runny nose, cough and low-grade fever that can be treated in many cases with over-the-counter pain relievers.

Parents are cautioned to be watchful for symptoms, such as persistent cough that is interfering with sleep, labored breathing and lack of appetite. Parents are advised to seek emergency care if an infant or child appears to be experiencing breathing difficulties during the night.

Novant pediatrician Dr. Amra Zuzo said that more severe cases of RSV can involve a child “making some weird noises in their breathing that are scary sounding.”

RSV can be prevented in newborns if their moms are vaccinated at 32 to 36 weeks of pregnancy.

An earlier uptick in RSV cases led Cone to begin requiring on Nov. 15 masks within hospital areas that care for infants and children. Cone said masking is being required within its cancer centers, neonatal and pediatric intensive care units and hospital pediatric departments.

Dr. Christopher Ohl, an infectious diseases expert with Baptist, said RSV is the main virus concern for those under age 18 months, while COVID-19 is for those ages 70 and older.

“For healthy individuals who are not at the extremes of age, flu, while not really a worry, will make them the most miserable and keep them out of work or school for a week or so,” Ohl said.

The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services continues to monitor weekly three key metrics: emergency department visits, coronavirus-related hospital admissions and wastewater testing.

For the week that ended Dec. 9, RSV represented about 1.9% of all emergency department visits statewide, the same as seen in the previous report.

It remains the highest percentage since 2% for the week that ended Nov. 12, 2022.

By comparison, cases of COVID-19 represented 3.7% of emergency department visits and influenza about 3.4%.

The influenza and RSV cases are at year-long highs, while the COVID-19 case are at the highest levels since 3.9% for the week that ended Feb. 18. 

For the week that ended Dec. 9, there were 556 hospital admissions for COVID-19 and 300 for influenza.

Cases of influenza and RSV had been on the upswing the past nine weeks statewide, while COVID-19 cases have held steady.

Though unusual, local infectious diseases experts say there have been local cases of people contracting two of the viruses at the same time.