Masks required in patient care areas at Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Communication and Marketing: (831) 625-4505 or MarCom@montagehealth.org
Montage Health has implemented masking requirements in patient care areas to protect workers, patients, and visitors from respiratory illness.
MONTEREY, CA. — To protect patients, staff, and visitors during respiratory virus season, masks are required for everyone in all Community Hospital patient care areas irrespective of flu, COVID-19, RSV, or other vaccination status.
For other Montage Health facilities, masks will be recommended for patients and visitors, and required for staff in patient care areas. These locations include, but are not limited to, MoGo Urgent Care, Community Hospital outpatient services, Montage Medical Group, and Ohana.
The policy is in effect from November 1, 2023, through January 31, 2024, with the date subject to extension depending on the status of respiratory illness in our community.
“As healthcare professionals, we are entrusted to provide a safe environment for our patients and everyone who walks through our doors,” says Dr. Martha Blum, an infectious disease expert with Montage Health. “During respiratory virus season, these measures improve the safety of our healthcare environment for all, including the most medically vulnerable who are under our care.”
Masks help prevent the spread of viruses for those in the early stages of an infection who may be asymptomatic but contagious, and they also provide some protection against exposure and infection. Masking decreases the risk of viral transmission regardless of vaccination status, which is especially important now as annual flu vaccinations and COVID-19 boosters are lower in Monterey County than previous years.
Montage Health prioritizes the safety and health of our community and strongly recommends vaccinations for flu, COVID-19, and RSV. Those who have received a COVID-19 vaccine can safely receive the flu and RSV vaccine, and all three vaccines can be given in the same visit.
Prevent illness during the upcoming respiratory virus season by taking measures including getting vaccinated, wearing a mask, washing your hands often, disinfecting high-touch surfaces, and covering coughs and sneezes with your elbow. If you do get sick, get tested and minimize contact with others.
Visitor and masking guidelines are subject to change. For more information about Montage Health’s visitor guidelines, visit montagehealth.org/visitor.
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ABOUT COMMUNITY HOSPITAL OF THE MONTEREY PENINSULA
Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, established in 1934, has grown and evolved in direct response to the changing healthcare needs of the people it serves. Its parent company is Montage Health, the umbrella for entities that work together to deliver exceptional care and inspire the pursuit of optimal health. Community Hospital is a nonprofit healthcare provider with 220 staffed acute-care hospital beds and 28 skilled-nursing beds, delivering a continuum of care from birth to end of life, and every stage in between. It serves the Monterey Peninsula and surrounding communities through locations including the main hospital, outpatient facilities, satellite laboratories, a mental health clinic, a short-term skilled nursing facility (Westland House), Hospice of the Central Coast, Montage Wellness Centers, and business offices. Find more information about Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula at chomp.org.
ABOUT MONTAGE HEALTH
Montage Health is the local, nonprofit parent company of a family of organizations dedicated to improving lives by delivering exceptional care and inspiring the pursuit of optimal health. Through its subsidiaries and its partnerships with doctors and other clinicians, healthcare and community organizations, and, most importantly community members, Montage Health is dedicated to care that is coordinated across all care settings to meet each person’s goals and needs. Montage Health companies include Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, Montage Medical Group, Montage Health Foundation, Montage Wellness Center, Aspire Health, and MoGo Urgent Care. For more information, visit www.montagehealth.org.
