Starting yesterday, visitors over 14 are allowed to visit patients, with the exception of the Maternity Ward, where siblings of newborns are permited to visit with a responsible guardian.

The Hope Haven unit allows visitors of all ages.

Only two visitors per patient are allowed. Visiting hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Full press release after the jump:

United Memorial instituted new visitor guidelines on Tuesday, April 27, 2010. Restricted visitor guidelines were issued in October 2009 based on the threat of the H1N1 virus.

The new guidelines rescind the ban on visitors under the age of 18 to the facility. The hospital’s current policy allows visitors over the age of 14 with the exception of Maternity, where siblings of newborns are permitted to visit with a responsible guardian. The Hope Haven unit allows visitors from all age groups when appropriate.

Only two visitors per patient are allowed at any one time. Visiting hours are from 9 am to 9 pm for most medical/surgical units. Visiting hours for Maternity are from 1 pm to 8:30 pm (significant others allowed at all times) and the Intensive Care Unit’s are from 9 am to 8 pm. Exceptions to the general visitors’ policy are made for the Hope Haven, Emergency, and Hospice/Comfort Care units and at the discretion of the attending physician when deemed appropriate by a patient’s condition.

Patients look forward to visitors and those visits are an important part of recovery. Rest is also a vital component of treatment, and it is the responsibility of the hospital to regulate visiting hours so as not to interfere with healing. 

United Memorial requests that all visitors cooperate in promoting the comfort and well-being of patients by trying to keep visits brief, using quiet tones, and not disturbing others. Any person with a cold, sore throat or other transmissible illness should not visit patients. Visitors under the age of 14 will be screened for illness and a log of their visit will be kept. Visitors over the age of 14 will be visually screened for illness by hospital staff and may be asked to use appropriate protective measures if necessary. If visiting patients who are on “isolation,” guests will be instructed by the nursing staff in proper protective guidelines.

All visitors are encouraged to wash their hands before and after visiting any patient.

Infection prevention is a priority at United Memorial, and as a result, we have one of the lowest infection rates among Western New York hospitals. Questions regarding changes to the visitors guidelines may be addressed by the Infection Prevention Department, Nursing Supervisors, or Community Relations Department.

In response to the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, the local health department has coordinated H1N1 vaccine distribution to numerous physician offices throughout the county. In addition, we have conducted several Points of Dispensing (POD’s) in order to assist the medical professionals in protecting our community against this virus. A large number of these clinics were established directly at schools within Genesee County prior to the holiday recess in December.

On Jan. 23, a clinic was held at the Batavia City Centre to target the child population requiring a second dose. Children less than 10 years of age need to receive two .25 ml doses of the vaccine at least 28 days apart, to provide the proper immune protection against the H1N1 Virus.

If your child has not received their second dose, we ask you contact the Genesee County Health Department or your primary care physician to schedule an appointment as soon as possible. The vaccine is FREE. Some physicians may require an administrative fee.

For more information on the H1N1 virus and for a schedule of H1N1 clinics in Genesee County, please visit: HYPERLINK "http://www.readyGenesee.com" www.ReadyGenesee.com or call the Genesee County Health Department for an appointment at: 585-344-2580 ext. 5000.

The Genesee County Health Department offers both the H1N1 and seasonal flu vaccines. To schedule an appointment, please contact the health department at (585) 344-2580, ext. 5000.

Parents of children ages 9 and under who received their first vaccination more than 28 days ago, are encouraged to bring those children to receive the second (booster) vaccination.  All children under age 18 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.

Additional information and a listing of the many volunteers who devoted their service to the residents of Genesee County throughout this endeavor, are available at www.ReadyGenesee.com and www.co.genesee.ny.us/dpt/publichealth.

There is a clinic today for both seasonal and H1N1 vaccines from noon to 4 p.m. at County Building II.

Another clinic has been set for Jan. 21 from noon to 4 p.m., and an H1N1-only clinic is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Jan. 23 at Batavia City Centre. On Jan. 23, priority will be given to children under 9 who need a booster vaccine.

The clinics are open to everyone over 6-months old.

The Health Department can be reached at (585) 344-2580, extension 5000.

When people have flu-like symptoms, or a friend or relative does, the first thing they do is hop on Google to see if they can self-diagnose or learn more about the illness.

Those searches spike when there are a lot of people feeling sick.

Google has found that its search trends correlate to Center for Disease Control reports, but CDC lags Google's real-time results by about two weeks.

The current trends show minimal concern in the Buffalo and Rochester area (they don't break it down for Batavia specifically) about the flu this month. 

Learn more about how this works by clicking here.

The clinic is noon to 4 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 21.

The next clinic is noon to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 13. There's also one during the same time period on Thursday, Jan. 21.

The next clinic is from noon to 4 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 8. The others are noon to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 13 and Thursday, Jan. 21.

Rain, sleet and snow didn't keep several hundred people from trying to get flu vaccinations today at County Building Number 2 in the Town of Batavia.

At one point, the line snaked outside and around the side of the building. Seniors, parents and children were waiting two or more hours for either a shot of the seasonal flu vaccine or the H1N1 nasal mist.

A winter storm of sorts started not long after the clinic doors opened, and by then the line  already stretched well outside the building.

"I was standing in the rain and snow out there a little while before and I was thinking, I'm going to get a flu shot to prevent getting sick and I'm going to get sick standing in line in the rain and the snow, so I wonder if it's really worth it," Walter Kershenski said. He also happens to be Stafford Town Clerk, and said he stood in line for more than two hours.

There were reports of people driving from Orleans, Monroe and even Chautauqua counties for the vaccinations, and apparently, nobody was being turned away for the free vaccines.

Interim Health Director Randy Garney said the Health Department was expecting to provide at least 500 doses of vaccine in two hours, but had received an extra shipment of seasonal flu and H1N1 vaccine just days ago.

"I figure, two hours, that's going to be about all we're going to be able to process, but we're going to keep the clinic open as long as there is a line," Garney said.

"With recent events that have taken place, we were expecting a large crowd," Garney said.

Rosemary Sero, of Oakfield, said all the reports of people getting sick with H1N1 and especially the death of a Pembroke student, has her feeling very cautious about taking care of her two young daughters.

"They're using a lot of hand sanitizer," she said. "They wash their hands a lot. I tell them not to touch their face."

The walk-in clinic will be open from 2 to 4 p.m..

Seasonal flu vaccine is available for people 19 and older, and H1N1 vaccine is available for people 2 to 24 years of age, and for people 25 to 59 who care for or live with infants.

Vaccine supplies are limited.