Coronavirus

Where and when is COVID-19 testing available?
Outpatient COVID-19 testing is available at Hillsdale Hospital’s main lab or the outpatient lab at Three Meadows. The main lab is located on the hospital campus at 168 S. Howell Street in Hillsdale. The lab is open Monday-Friday,  6:30 am-5 pm and Saturday, 6:30 am-12 pm. The outpatient lab at Three Meadows Medical Building is located in Suite 285, 451 Hidden Meadows Drive in Hillsdale, open Monday through Friday, 8 am-12 pm.

In partnership with our reference lab at Sparrow, we also offer self-collection PCR test kits available free for pickup at the main hospital lab. They are available first come, first served Monday through Friday during the lab’s regular business hours. Hillsdale County residents may retrieve up to 6 test kits per household and may pick up for up to 3 households. (This is particularly helpful when multiple households are planning to gather for an event and all would like to test prior to the gathering.) The self-collection swabs can be returned to the lab for processing. If you drop off your swab by 3 pm on weekday, you will be notified by phone with your test results within 24 hours. If you have not received notification of your results within 24 hours, please call Sparrow Client Services at (517) 371-9500.

Do I need an appointment or a physician’s order?
The lab is walk-in only, but a physician’s order is required for outpatient testing. (If you are picking up self-collection kits, no physician order is required.)

Who should I call if I have questions?
If you have questions about your health or whether you need a COVID-19 test, please contact your primary healthcare provider. If you do not have one, you can always visit Hillsdale Health & Wellness, our walk-in clinic at 240 W. Carleton Road, or you can call to set-up a Virtual Visit with one of our providers at (517) 437-7040. If you have questions about laboratory services, please call (517) 437-5160.

Updated May 17, 2022

visitors to Hillsdale Hospital owned and operated locations and services are permitted as shown below.

Please note: Patients in isolation are not permitted visitors, regardless of condition (COVID-19, influenza, etc.) until they meet the clinical criteria to be removed from isolation. Limited exceptions may apply.

• Emergency Room: Up to two visitors per patient at a time.
• McGuire & MacRitchie (Skilled Nursing Facility): Call for current guidelines.
• Medical/Surgical/Critical Care Unit: Up to two visitors per patient at a time during visiting hours of 8 am-8 pm.
• Behavioral Health Unit: Up to two visitors per patient permitted only from 6-7:30 pm Monday through Friday or 3-5 pm Saturday, Sunday and on holidays.
• Birthing Center (OB):
  • Visitors must be 12 years or older and in good health to visit patients.
  • No children under the age of 12 will be permitted unless they are a sibling to the infant. Sibling Visitation will be allowed provided the siblings are in good health.
  • The patient’s main support person will be permitted to visit anytime.
  • Recommended visiting hours are 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. These hours are guidelines and due to a variety of circumstances it may be appropriate to approve visitation prior to or extending after these recommended guidelines. It may also be necessary to restrict visitation at times during the patient’s stay. The birthing center staff in their sole discretion will enforce these guidelines and make provisions if needed to meet the patient’s needs.
• Surgery: Up to two visitors per patient.
• All Other Outpatient Services (Main Hospital Campus): Up to two visitors per patient.
• Hillsdale Health & Wellness: One visitor per patient.
• All Other Outpatient Clinics & Locations: No visitor restrictions.

Please see our March press release for information on why restrictions are in place.

Hillsdale Hospital staff will perform a health evaluation of all individuals that are not under the care of the facility each time the individual seeks to enter the facility, and will deny entry to those individuals who do not meet the evaluation criteria. Criteria that would prohibit an individual from entry include:

• Symptoms of a respiratory infection, such as fever, cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat
• Contact in the last 14 days with someone with a confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19

The evaluation criteria may be updated without warning as new information and recommendations become available.

Yes. Hillsdale Hospital is prepared to safely screen, diagnose and care for patients with respiratory illness, including 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). In the event a COVID-19 case presents at any of our care locations across the county, Hillsdale Hospital has coordinated care plans in place, established in collaboration with our local health department, the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency (BHSJ), which are based on the most current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.

With continued issues and concerns associated with COVID-19, we at Hillsdale Hospital are doing everything we can to protect employees, patients and visitors and minimize the risk of disruption to patient care. Visitation is also being restricted to the hospital in order to minimize exposure for patients, families, staff and community members.

When there is heightened concern around an illness, we closely monitor the situation and implement enhanced infection prevention strategies, working closely with local and state health departments and the CDC.

Our organization-wide prevention and response team closely monitors the rapidly-evolving situation with a particular focus on the issues presented by the virus, including employee health and safety, patient and visitor health and safety, and travel and operational issues.

Please do your part to keep each other, our patients and our community safe by following guidelines from the CDC about prevention:

• Get vaccinated.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom; before eating; and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Stay home when you are sick. Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces using a regular household cleaning spray or wipe.

At all potential points of patient care contact, we are applying CDC-recommended screening.

1. Every person calling to schedule an appointment at any of our care locations is respiratory screened. In in order to minimize exposure, patients will be directed to the appropriate care location based on the clinical screening. All people suspecting illness are advised to perform frequent hand hygiene, wear a mask, and limit contact with others.
2. Every person presenting at a Hillsdale Hospital location (emergency room, primary care office, specialty clinic) is rapidly triaged by informed and educated staff.
3. If the person is respiratory symptom screened positive, they are given a mask, separated from other patients, and staff rapidly implement infection prevention protocols.
4. Hillsdale Hospital staff notify Hillsdale Hospital Infection Control and the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency (BHSJ) for their recommendations and proper documentation.

When there is heightened concern around an illness, we implement enhanced infection prevention strategies and ensure we are ready with supplies and plans should the need arise. These plans include:

• Continuing to follow CDC-recommended standard infection prevention measures, including hand hygiene and respiratory etiquette.
• Updating and training staff regarding CDC transmission prevention guidelines specific to COVID-19.
• Following CDC recommendations for isolation based on the site of care. For hospital patients this is airborne isolation.
• Routinely practicing and rehearsing for the potential of infectious disease outbreak in our community, in collaboration with BSHJ, to ensure we are prepared. Where particular public health risks are identified, we monitor the situation to ensure prevention and preparation strategies are the most contemporary, based on the most current clinical standards.
• Assessing our supply inventories and continuously monitoring current supplies on a routine basis. We are working with our supply chain vendors to replenish our supplies. We are implementing CDC strategies for optimizing the supply of N95 respirators and utilizing alternative supplies when feasible.
• Putting visitor restrictions in place. One designated visitor, 18 or older and healthy, is permitted per patient for the duration of the patient’s stay, and may visit between the hours of 8 am and 5 pm. Visitors may be screened prior to entering patient care areas. As we continue to monitor COVID-19, we will update these visitor restrictions when appropriate.

Hillsdale Hospital clinical providers assess each patient and determine clinically-appropriate testing. If your provider believes you need to be tested and you have a written order, you can be tested at the Hillsdale Hospital Outpatient Lab.

Hillsdale Hospital provides regular communications to our clinical providers regarding current CDC guidelines for diagnosis and treatment. Essential care providers deliver care in collaboration and with consultation from infectious disease experts including Randy Holland, RN, infection prevention officer, and Dr. John Paul Jones, chair of the hospital’s infection control committee.

Not all patients with COVID-19 will require hospitalization. For those who do, we have negative pressure rooms at Hillsdale Hospital if needed. We have emergency operations plans in place to be executed based on need. For patients who are discharged, we will refer to the CDC for the non-hospital quarantine process.