Patients & Visitors
Current Visitor Guidelines
Patients presenting to Merit Health River Oaks
may have two visitors age 16 or older.
Exceptions to this policy include:
- Patients with a physician's order for no visitors.
- Adult patients placed on COVID isolation.
- Circumstances where visitation needs to be restricted in the interest of the safety of the patients, staff, and the community. This exception requires the approval of the administrator on call and may apply to individual departments and/or the entire hospital.
- COVID positive inpatients at the end of life and COVID positive OB patients in isolation are allowed 1 visitor.
- Patients in NICU are allowed 2 visitors at a time. Only parents, grandparents, or a support person/significant other in lieu of a parent or grandparent may visit.
- ICU and emergency department patients may have 1 visitor age 18 years or older.
- Postpartum patients may have 4 visitors at a time. No age restriction.
- Labor & delivery patients are allowed 2 visitors ages 18 years or older.
No one known to be COVID positive is allowed to enter as a visitor.
- All persons (patients, visitors, vendors, and staff) attest that they have no COVID symptoms when they enter the facility.
- Universal masking is required at Merit Health River Oaks.
- Frequent hand washing (20 second time frame for washing hands with soap and water) is encouraged to protect from the spread of germs and viruses.
Thank you for your support and cooperation.
At Merit Health River Oaks, we understand that coming to the hospital as a patient or as a loved one's support person can be a difficult, often overwhelming experience. Whether you’re preparing for a hospital stay or stopping by to see friends and family, knowing where to go and what to bring will help make your visit less stressful. To make your experience easier, we want to provide you with helpful information you may need to plan your visit, such as what to expect, parking instructions, transportation and more.