Natasha Vaughn-Holdridge is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media officials at Columbia Memorial Health November 30, announce the temporary suspension of some visitation due to concerns over resurgent COVID cases and the uncertainty of the omicron variant. CMH is one of several area hospitals limiting visitors from inpatient units because of the recent increase in local COVID cases. “When we started to see the numbers ramp up we took that as a precaution to protect our patients, the staff and the community at large from transmission of the virus,” Columbia Memorial spokesperson Bill Van Slyke said. There are some exceptions to the new visitation policy, such s visits for patients near the end of life, parents or guardians of hospitalized children, patients requiring a support person and special circumstances at the discretion of staff such as discharge planning and family meetings. Van Slyke said the hospital will take each request under advisement on a case-by-case basis and ensure all possible protective measures are in place. According to the CMH website, the visitor policy remains unchanged in the emergency department, surgical services and behavioral health. Albany Medical Center began a new visitation policy November 29, allowing one visitor for patients in in-patient units and up to two visitors for patients in critical care units. CMH on Tuesday had 12 COVID patients in the hospital, which included two in the intensive care unit, Van Slyke said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.