We're Here to Care for You – Safely
Patient safety is our top priority at every UW Medicine hospital and clinic
UW Medicine is open, safe and available for appointments
Safety measures for in-person visits
UW Medicine has made in-person appointments even safer, with mask requirements, physical distancing, mandatory staff screening and more.
Expanded telehealth capabilities
Since COVID-19 was discovered in our community, we have greatly expanded our telehealth services to allow patients to receive care from home.
We’re here to address all your health needs
Our hospitals, clinics and emergency departments are open and ready to provide safe care to you and your family. Don’t delay getting care.
Pandemic or not, it was time to seek care.
If Carly had delayed seeing her doctor, she wouldn’t have known she had preeclampsia, a pregnancy complication that would have imperiled her health – and that of this little guy.
How we’re keeping you safe
All patients and visitors (2 years of age and older), vendors and employees – even if fully vaccinated – must wear a mask covering their nose and mouth when entering and while inside of a UW Medicine facility to protect against COVID-19 transmission.
Masks will be provided to people who do not have one and some people may be asked to place a medical grade mask over their personal mask to improve the quality of personal protection. UW Medicine uses high quality multi-layered face masks for patients, visitors and staff.
Anyone with special mask needs may communicate their needs with our representative at the entrance or contact patient relations.
We reconfigured our clinical areas and waiting rooms wherever possible to optimize and maintain physical distancing precautions and have signage throughout our locations to remind people to keep 6 feet of distance whenever possible.
Employees monitor their symptoms daily. Employees who develop symptoms of a respiratory illness are required to stay home until they have been cleared by Employee Health to return to work. All employees also have quick access to COVID-19 testing when they have symptoms of the disease.
UW Medicine has implemented enhanced cleaning and disinfecting procedures to help ensure the health and safety of our patients and their families.
All UW Medicine patients are tested for COVID-19 prior to having a surgical procedure. If a patient tests positive for COVID-19 and if surgery can be safely delayed, it will be postponed until the patient has fully recovered.
Each patient admitted to labor and delivery is also tested for COVID-19. If the mother tests positive, our care teams take special precautions to keep mother and baby as safe as possible.
In addition, all patients admitted to UW Medicine hospitals are tested for COVID-19, regardless of if they have symptoms associated with a respiratory illness. Testing enables us to assign highly specialized teams to care for COVID-19 patients in dedicated areas of our hospitals.
Visitor restrictions are in effect until COVID-19 is no longer a threat. Learn more about our COVID-19 Visitor Policy.
Creating a safe environment for our patients begins with hand hygiene. Our caregivers will wash their hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand sanitizer before they care for you.
We continue to learn about COVID-19 and adapt our care practices to reflect the latest recommendations from our UW Medicine experts, who are recognized as national leaders in the fields of infectious disease and virology. We also work very closely to assure your safety with our partners at Public Health – Seattle & King County and Washington State Department of Health.
If you have an urgent care need or your child is a newborn or needs a wellness visit requiring immunizations, please do not delay your visit. If you have questions or concerns about safety in our hospitals and clinics, please contact your UW Medicine healthcare team.
