HOLLAND (WHTC-AM/FM) — A 73rd death from COVID-19 has been reported in Ottawa County, with 1,642 people now diagnosed with the virus. That’s an increase of more than 250 over Monday’s total number of ill people. More than 500 Allegan County resident are trying to recover from COVID-19. The death toll there remains at seven, but the telling figure is Allegan County’s daily average of people learning they have lab-confirmed cases of the virus.
As of Oct. 1, 2020 Allegan Co. had a daily average of 6.1 people learning they had the virus. As of Monday, Oct. 26, 2020, that daily average is 26.7 people.
Ottawa Co. had close to 250 more people diagnosed between Monday and Tuesday.
Late Tuesday, Oct. 27, Holland Hospital officials announced new restrictions on visitors, after the number of people hospitalized went from 13 on Monday to 19 less than 24 hours later, according to the hospital webpage posts.
COVID-19 is just one reason for the new limits. Hospital officials, in a statement emailed to media, noted flu virus also presents very real challenges.
With Ottawa County’s COVID-19 positivity rate nearing 6 percent, and hospitalizations increasing, limits start Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020, include:
No visitors will be allowed in the hospital with the following exceptions:
- Boven Birth Center patients are allowed one support person.
- Patients under 18 years old are allowed visits by parents or a guardian.
- Patients in Intensive Care are allowed one visitor.
- Patients undergoing an outpatient surgery or procedure may be accompanied by one adult.
- Patients with an appointment at a Holland Hospital physician office, laboratory, radiology or brought to the Emergency Department may have one person with them.
Visitors must remain in the patient’s room for the duration of visit. No clergy will be allowed.
Starting Wednesday, the cafeteria will be closed to the public, but open to staff and approved visitors only.
Holland Hospital protocols are the same as recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, other state and local agencies.
All employees are being screened for COVID-19 before entering Holland Hospital and Holland Hospital physician offices, and are required to follow hospital hygiene requirements; washing and/or sanitizing hands and wearing proper personal protection equipment at all times.
Patients receiving care at a Holland Hospital outpatient location or physician office are required to wear a mask, have their temperature checked, answer a series of health screening questions and follow all safety protocols like social distancing in waiting rooms.
Hospital officials expressed confidence in the staff’s ability, training, and preparation for handling this latest surge of illness, while delivering quality care for patients, but also noting that the COVID-19 Command Center “continues to evaluate the evolving situation.”
The statement also strongly encouraged people to be vigilant — wearing a mask in public, staying at least six feet from others, avoiding crowds, washing or sanitizing hands regularly and getting seasonal vaccines, such as a flu shot.
On Oct. 22, 2020, 110 major health systems across Michigan, including Spectrum Health, issued a joint statement about COVID-19 mitigation efforts, saying in part, “We want to make it clear that regardless of state law, executive orders, or local public health directives, hospitals and healthcare systems across the state are standing as a united front in our policies and interventions in order to fight the spread of COVID-19. It is imperative that every Michigan resident join us in taking the necessary steps to prevent the spread of this deadly disease.”
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