Tuesday, October 4, 2016
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Roper St. Francis Healthcare announces Hurricane Matthew closings
Roper St. Francis Healthcare will curtail services during the coming days to ensure the safety of its teammates and patients.
• All elective surgeries will be canceled for Thursday and Friday.
• Wednesday surgeries will be limited to outpatient surgeries scheduled prior to noon.
• Roper St. Francis Physician Partner offices will be closed starting noon Wednesday.
• Roper St. Francis diagnostic centers, such as James Island Diagnostic Center located at 325 Folly Road, Wingo Way Diagnostics located at 180 Wingo Way and our Goose Creek location at 149 St. James Avenue, will be closed starting at noon Wednesday.
• Roper – Northwoods ER in North Charleston will close at 6 p.m. on Thursday.
• The Lowcountry Senior Center will close Wednesday.
• Patient census will be reduced in all hospitals, and admissions will be limited to true emergencies as required by state authorities.
Because of the logistical challenges of evacuating coastal hospitals at the same time the public evacuates, Roper St. Francis Healthcare leaders are confident it is in the best interest of patients to shelter in place. Roper St. Francis Healthcare and other coastal hospitals have worked with the state to develop an evacuation exemption process that seeks to ensure the safety of both patients and staff. To satisfy the evacuation exemption, Roper St. Francis Healthcare has committed to the following actions:
• Reduce patient census
• Update critical data sheets regarding facility capabilities to withstand the storm
• Reduce and eliminate discretionary services
• Stop admission of non-emergent patients
• Cancel elective procedures