Starting Monday, most area hospitals will begin barring children from visiting patients in an effort to stem the spread of flu, including the pandemic H1N1 strain that is currently circulating.
Hospitals affiliated with Duke University Health System -- including Duke University Medical Center, Durham Regional and Duke Raleigh -- began restricting visits last week.
At Duke medical campuses, children under the age of 18 are asked to stay home, and other visitors are limited to immediate family members or designated caregivers of patients.
"Really, our bottom line is we want to make sure people are being conscientious about limiting visits, and if they have symptoms of illness at all, to stay home," said Melissa Schwarting, spokeswoman for Duke.
UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill and Rex Healthcare in Raleigh are barring visits from children under the age of 12.
WakeMed in Raleigh is limiting visits to immediate family members over the age of 18, or the adults most involved in the patient's daily care.
"Sometimes the support structure may be a neighbor or best friend," said Barbara Bisset, executive director of the Emergency Services Institute at WakeMed. "It's not always a blood relative, and we want them involved in the patient's care."
The move to keep children out of hospitals is based on science. Researchers have found that children are the main sources of infection in households, because they are highly interactive and less than fastidious about hygiene.
Year ago, hospitals years ago routinely barred children from visiting, Bisset said, but changed the policy because of the positive effect they have on ailing loved ones.
Hospital officials said the temporary no-children rules will be lifted once the threat of widespread infection passes. But it could be months before a return to normal -- perhaps as late as next spring, when influenza tends to wane.
