Adventist Health St. Helena resumes elective surgeries and procedures
Adventist Health St. Helena is pleased to resume elective surgeries, including hip and knee replacement and heart procedures such as valve repair and gastrointestinal surgeries.
Adventist Health St. Helena has met the requirements of the California Department of Public Health to resume essential procedures. Following the governor’s instructions, the local situation and the decision of Adventist Health St. Helena’s clinical leaders, the staff has begun scheduling elective surgeries and procedures.
“The state provided criteria to guide the process, and I am pleased to report that we have met all of the requirements and have resumed elective surgical cases,” says Steven Herber, MD, Adventist Health St. Helena’s president. “I am grateful for our team’s hard work to pull together all of the elements necessary to resume our services.”
“Patient safety is always our first priority,” he says. “We have taken additional safety measures to protect patients, staff and visitors.” Adventist Health St. Helena has instituted policies and procedures aligned with state and national guidelines to protect patients and their loved ones during the COVID-19 pandemic. These include enhancing disinfection procedures, screening everyone entering the hospital or clinics, requiring masks for both patients and associates and restricting all visitors except for one companion when necessary. “We also have the ability to test patients and providers, and we have more than an adequate supply of personal protective equipment.”
In addition, Adventist Health St. Helena is keeping patients safe with the launch of the Synexis Microbial Reduction system, which uses dry hydrogen peroxide to reduce germs in occupied spaces. “Synexis will help us safely clean the toughest and out-of-reach areas of a room while it is occupied,” says Karen Phillips, infection prevention specialist. “We are the first in the Bay Area to have this advanced technology.”
Adventist Health St. Helena has also launched on-demand virtual visits for routine, urgent care and specialist visits. Patients can visit with their healthcare provider from the comfort of their home. In addition, the hospital’s primary care and urgent clinics are accepting walk-in patients. Appointments may be scheduled by calling the clinics directly. A complete list of clinics may be found at https://www.adventisthealth.org/locations/.
Anyone experiencing an emergency, such as difficulty breathing, chest pain, stroke-like symptoms, head injuries, a broken bone or burns is urged to call 911 immediately or go to the emergency department.
“It is important not to delay treatment when you need it,” Herber says. “It is safe to come to Adventist Health St. Helena, and we want to take care of our community.”
