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Information for visitors

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Visiting Bradford Teaching Hospitals

We are doing everything possible to keep our patients and visitors safe. We have reviewed our visiting rules in light of the easing of the national lockdown, and the following restrictions are now in place:

Visiting  for inpatients in our hospitals for over seven days on GREEN wards is now allowed.

All other patients: we will only allow visits under the following exceptional circumstances:

Paediatric wards
Two parents or carers can swap in and out for visits/stays once every 24 hours.

Labour Ward and Birth Centre
A birth partner can stay for the duration of labour. This person is not interchangeable.

M3 patients and M4 patients can have one-hour visits at a pre-arranged time between 1-5pm (except on the day of discharge) from one dedicated person, the birth partner.

M4 patients who have been in hospital for more than three days can have two-hour visits at pre-arranged times (except on the day of discharge) from either one dedicated person (the birth partner) or one nominated person who is aged over 16.

Prenatal scans
Women are allowed to have one adult with them at all scans. This person should be the birthing partner or from the same household or bubble.

AED department supportive visits
One visitor will be allowed to be present where the patient is being treated in the resuscitation area or the High Dependency Unit section of the Accident and Emergency department.

End-of-life supportive visits
Previously, if the patient was nearing the end of life, we allowed one-to-two visitors only. However, if the patient has children aged 16 or over, they may also visit, providing there are no more than two visitors at any one time.

BTHFT will continue to  support difficult conversations and allow carers to attend where the patient needs physical or cognitive support –  with restrictions in place on the length of visit and the number of visitors allowed.

The Trust has put in place a number of resources to support family members/visitors unable to visit patients: 

  • Our Relatives’ Telephone Information Line takes calls for some of our wards. Please contact the ward or relatives’ line to see if the clinical area in question is using this service. Please call 01274 272747 from 9:30am to 5:30pm
  • Thinking of you is a dedicated email address for loved ones to send letters via email to our patients: ThinkingOfYou@bthft.nhs.uk
  • Many wards have video calling in place and may be able to assist with video calls when there is no visiting
  • We have a dedicated patient property team work who can accept and take belongings to inpatients from 7:30am to 6:30pm. Please see below for more information. Please do not bring in too much and hot, fresh or perishable foodstuffs are not permitted.

Last edited 19/07/2021

Please note: Visitors to Bradford Teaching Hospitals under exceptional circumstances and people attending outpatients’ appointments MUST still wear a face mask at all times to protect themselves and others from coronavirus. Although the rules have been relaxed outside our hospitals, BTHFT staff are still wearing masks and following social distancing guidelines to protect patients, visitors and each other. Please follow their lead. It is important masks and face coverings are worn safely. For more information, please watch this short video.

Anyone showing any symptoms of coronavirus should not visit. If you are in a high risk category i.e. you have an underlying health condition that puts you at risk of COVID-19, you should also not visit.

Visiting Bradford Royal Infirmary for a Covid-19 vaccination

  • If you are visiting Bradford Royal Infirmary for a Covid-19 vaccination, please enter the hospital site via Gate 5 on Smith Lane (Maternity Unit entrance). The postcode is BD9 5HP (see the map).
  • Free, cordoned-off parking for people attending BRI for a vaccination is available on your immediate right, within the Maternity Unit’s car park
  • Covid vaccinations are taking place within the Sovereign Lecture Theatre, which is a short walk away from the car park. Please follow the signposts and look out for our marshals who will be wearing high-vis yellow jackets. They will direct you to the vaccination hub and will be happy to answer any questions. Please enter ‘Sovereign Lecture Theatre’ in the map search box opposite for its exact location
  • An accessible entrance to the lecture theatre and lifts are available for those that need them
  • Please remember to wear a face covering, wash your hands and follow social distancing guidelines when visiting the hospital site

Patient property drop-offs

Bradford currently has a ‘no-visiting’ policy in place.

Due to national lockdown restrictions the Trust has also made the decision to stop accepting hot, fresh or perishable foods to help minimise the number of drop-offs at our hospitals. We will now only accept essential items in line with Government guidance and travel restrictions.

Property for Bradford Royal Infirmary patients can be dropped off at the Duckworth Lane entrance between 7:30am and 6:30pm, seven days a week. If you need to drop off an item outside these hours, you must first gain permission from the clinical area in question, as items will have to be collected by a member of staff.

Please only send essential items and keep property to a minimum. This helps us keep our areas clutter-free and makes them easier to clean, helping to keep infection rates down.

Due to increased demand we can no longer accept hot, fresh or perishable foods. The items we recommend you bring if required are:

  • Night and day clothes
  • Sensible footwear
  • Toiletries
  • Books/jigsaw puzzles, if appropriate
  • If you wish to bring in snacks please keep them to a minimum. Snack-food should have a long shelf life and require no preparation, such as biscuits

If your relative has a mobile phone or tablet computer and did not bring it to hospital then you may wish to bring one in along with a charger. * The Trust cannot be held responsible for valuables which are brought onto Trust sites at your own risk.

St Luke’s Hospital and community hospitals: please contact the ward before bringing in any items.

Keeping in touch with loved-ones

In the short films below we explain more about the measures we’ve introduced at Bradford Teaching Hospitals to help you keep in touch and be there for your loved-ones during this difficult time.

The films are available in English, Urdu, Polish, Pahari/Punjabi and Czech/Slovak.

We’ve also recorded a digital audio file in Pahari for blind and partially-sighted people on the ways you can keep in touch with loved-ones in our hospitals.

English

English

BSL

English

Coronavirus: national guidance on attending our hospitals

If you have symptoms of coronavirus, do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital. You do not need to contact NHS 111 to tell them you’re staying at home. Read the advice about staying at home

For urgent advice: use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service: www.111.nhs.uk/covid-19 if: 

  • you feel you cannot cope with your symptoms at home
  • your condition gets worse
  • your symptoms do not get better after 7 days

Only call 111 if you cannot get help online.

Patients should attend their appointments as usual, unless we contact you direct or you have a cough and/or high temperature.

Due to operational pressures, we may have to reschedule some planned operations to allow staff to focus on those who need urgent care. 

Some outpatient appointments may also change from face-to-face appointments to telephone consultations to avoid patients coming into hospital.

If you are affected by these changes we will contact you by phone or text. Unless you hear from us, please attend your appointment. We are taking all necessary steps to try to keep any disruption for patients to an absolute minimum.

Wash your hands frequently

You should wash your hands for 20 seconds, using soap and water.

Make sure you are washing your hands effectively by watching this video: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/healthy-body/best-way-to-wash-your-hands/

Face masks

Visitors to Bradford Teaching Hospitals under exceptional circumstances and people attending outpatients’ appointments must wear a face mask at all times to protect them and others from coronavirus from Monday, 15 June. The new legislation applies to all our hospitals – BRI, St Luke’s, Westbourne Green and Westwood Park. It is important masks and face coverings are worn safely. For more information, please watch the video (English language and Urdu versions) below.

Learning disabilities and PPE

Our Lead Nurse for Learning Disabilities, Caroline Carass, and Ruth Foster, Bradford District Care Trust’s Learning Disabilities Community Matron have produced this video about the personal protective equipment (PPE) staff wear on our wards.

Contact details

Bradford Royal Infirmary

Smith Lane
Bradford
BD9 6DA

Switchboard: 01274 542200

For appointments: Centralised Patient Booking Service

St Luke's Hospital

Little Horton Lane
Bradford
BD5 0NA

Switchboard: 01274 734744

Eccleshill Community Hospital

450 Harrogate Road
Eccleshill
Bradford
West Yorkshire
BD10 oJE

Switchboard: 01274 323200

Shipley Hospital

98 Kirkgate
Shipley
West Yorkshire
BD18 3LT

Switchboard: 01274 773390

Westwood Park Community Hospital

Swift Drive
Off Cooper Lane
Bradford
West Yorkshire
BD6 3NL

Switchboard: 01274 425990

Westbourne Green Community Hospital

26 Heaton Road
Bradford
West Yorkshire
BD8 8RA

Switchboard: 01274 322093

Coronavirus: change to visiting rules

Our staff fully understand that you have been unable to visit loved-ones in our hospitals during the coronavirus pandemic.

There has been some easing of England’s lockdown rules, but you need to rest assured that there has been no relaxation in the care we provide to all our patients.

Most visiting remains suspended. Exceptions are for those receiving end-of-life care, one adult may visit a child, and one birthing partner can accompany women in labour.

Our Relatives’ Telephone Information Line takes calls for some of our wards. Please contact the ward or relatives’ line to see if the clinical area in question is using this service. Please call 01274 272747 from 10am to 6pm.

Please watch the short film below (available in English and Urdu) for more information on visiting. Further details on exceptional visiting circumstances can be found here.

End-of-life visiting

Following new Government recommendations, we have reinstated visiting for all end-of-life patients at Bradford Teaching Hospitals. In the short film below Chief Nurse, Karen Dawber, and Kez Hayat, Head of Diversity and Inclusion, explain more in both English and Urdu.

Contacting a patient

When ringing about a patient, please give the number of the ward they are on. It’s also helpful if only one person telephones with an enquiry, as this saves time and helps ensure nursing and ward staff are not running back and forth answering the phone. We do not have enough telephone lines for patients to take incoming calls, but we can take a message and ask a patient to call you back if they are able to do so.

Except in emergencies, please try to phone after 10am wherever possible. We cannot give medical information over the telephone.

  • Supporting relatives with technology poster

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