COLUMBIA, S.C. — Prisma Health system hospital is requiring masks for all hospital employees in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus in South Carolina.
Mark O'Halla, President and CEO of Prisma Health, announced that all team members and leaders are expected to wear a mask while inside a Prisma Health facility -- regardless of vaccination status -- effective Wednesday, August 11.
The new PPE use and masking protocol includes all team members and leaders in non-clinical buildings and offices when social distancing cannot easily be maintained.
More specifically:
- Unvaccinated team members working in clinical situations and interacting with patients or those who may enter patient rooms as part of their job must wear and N95 mask and eye protection at work.
- Team members caring for suspected or confirmed COVID-19 patients will continue to wear an N95 mask, eye protection, gown and gloves -- regardless of vaccination status.
The N95 respirator masks are designed to filter out at least 95% of airborne particles and are tight-fitting to restrict the amount of air that can get in around the edges of the masks, stopping more droplets that might potentially carry coronavirus.
On Monday, Prisma Health announced that visitation at hospitals and clinics within the health care system would be restricted to one care partner for adult inpatients, outpatients and ambulatory pediatric patients.
COVID-19 testing will continue for all inpatients, except for patients who tested positive at admission.
Employees were also urged to get vaccinated if they had not yet done so and encouraged to telecommute whenever possible.