Mt. LEBANON, Pa. – St. Clair Hospital this week resumed elective testing and diagnostic procedures for patients at its main campus and its Village Square Outpatient Center. Elective surgeries will resume on Monday, May 11.

The resumption of all medically necessary care follows guidance, issued by the Pennsylvania Secretary of Health on Monday, April 27, that hospitals across the state may resume the performance of elective care while considering a ‘roadmap’ issued by the American Hospital Association in conjunction with several medical and nursing professional associations.

In a communication sent on Wednesday, May 6, St. Clair recommended to its patients that essential medical care not be further delayed, and outlined numerous actions the Hospital is taking to keep its patients safe.  Key among these actions is the use of screening and testing protocols developed by its clinical experts with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as St. Clair’s clinical partner, Mayo Clinic.  Other key actions address steps to maintain a clean and safe environment: continued restrictions on visitors; promotion of social distancing; and the use of masks and other personal protection equipment (PPE) to safeguard patients and staff.

Also, as of Monday, May 4, St. Clair’s affiliated multispecialty group, St. Clair Medical Services, resumed providing routine in-office care, along with its continued use of telemedicine. St. Clair Medical Services has more than 130 physicians in the group, practicing at more than 35 sites across the South Hills. The offices will likewise have enhanced protections for returning patients.

In its communication to patients, St. Clair stressed the danger of ‘late presentation’ of serious illness, while recognizing that patients need to feel safe in coming to its facilities for care.  On Thursday, April 30, the Leapfrog Group, the nation’s leading watchdog for patient safety, again gave St. Clair a hospital safety grade of ‘A’, marking eight consecutive years of receiving the highest grade possible.  The grade reflects a composite score of how well hospitals protect patients from harm, including avoiding hospital-acquired infections.  St. Clair is the region’s only hospital, and among just the best 2 percent in the country, to receive a hospital safety grade of ‘A’ for eight consecutive years from the Leapfrog Group.

MT. LEBANON, Pa. – The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit health care ratings organization, has released new Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades for Spring 2020, awarding St. Clair Hospital an “A” for its commitment to keeping patients safe and meeting the highest safety standards in the U.S.  St. Clair Hospital’s A grade is the Hospital’s 16th consecutive A, placing St. Clair amongst the top hospitals in the country and the leader in the region for patient safety.  The Safety Grade assigns letter grades of A, B, C, D and F to hospitals nationwide based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms.

Developed under the guidance of a Blue Ribbon National Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

MT. LEBANON, Pa. – Effective Sunday, March 22, St. Clair Hospital is closing the Hospital to visitors. This measure is essential to ensure the health and safety of patients and staff.

Permitted circumstances will require exceptions to be made. Those rare exceptions will be determined by a patient’s clinical care team on a case by case basis.

A more complete description of the new visitation policy can be found on the Hospital’s website, www.stclair.org/coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19/

All permitted visitors will be screened for cough, fever, difficulty breathing or contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19.

MT. LEBANON, Pa. (March 16, 2020) – In response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) global pandemic, St. Clair Hospital today announced immediate, new restrictions on patient visitation. The revised policy, intended to protect patients, families and employees, will continue until further notice.

Under the revised policy, for most areas of the Hospital, visitation hours will be restricted to two, 2-hour periods, and patients in those areas of the Hospital will be limited to one visitor per visitation period.  In certain circumstances, limited exceptions will apply.  Patients in the Family Birth, Pediatric, and Psychiatric units of the Hospital will be permitted to have up to two visitors during visiting hours, which are defined on a unit-specific basis.   Visitors will be screened upon entering the Hospital, and must wash their hands upon entering and exiting both the patient’s room and the Hospital. Visitors must also wear a Hospital-issued identification badge.

Family and friends are asked to refrain from visiting patients if they are experiencing any symptoms of illness themselves, such as fever, cough or sore throat.  No visitors under the age of 18 will be permitted.