Forward Thinking Birmingham visiting (Community Mental Health)

For inpatients, two adults may visit together for a period of two hours during daylight hours. Outside of this, visiting is restricted to one designated family member or carer at any one time.

Siblings and other children will not be able to visit at any time.

For outpatient attendances a maximum of two designated family members or carers may accompany the patient for the appointment.

Masks should be worn when visiting patients or attending for appointments or treatment.

We understand that there will be exceptional circumstances in some cases. Please speak to the person or team leading a patient's care about what can be safely done. This must be by prior agreement.

What to do when you visit us (physical distancing, hygiene)

Please follow national guidelines and wear a face covering when visiting us. You can find information and guides to make your own at home here. We will also have several face coverings available and specially designed coverings from our Charity can be purchased either at our hospitals or online. Please also see this mask advice infographic from Birmingham Health Partners.

Wash your hands and dry them thoroughly when you arrive on site.

We’re making changes to how you travel around our sites. Please follow directions to your destination and signage to support physical distancing.

Metres matter – try to maintain two metres from other people whenever possible. If you can’t, keep as much space between you and the other person as you can.

Regular COVID-19 lateral flow tests are another vital way to keep you, your baby, your family and our staff safe. These tests are important even if you do not have any symptoms of COVID-19. It is currently expected that a low number of people will have a positive result without having symptoms of COVID-19 (about 1%-2%).

Keep two metres apart animation

Support regarding special circumstances

  • Those who are exempt from wearing face masks can print the government cards to show this to staff or other patients
  • If you or the patient you are supporting has Learning disabilities, visual or hearing impairment or autism/anxiety – please let us know in advance and we will try to support you.
  • The LiveTranscribe App can be useful to download if you usually lip-read – it allows live transcribing on your smartphone screen, and many of our staff have downloaded it too.
  • We have ‘Dora’ Electronic Interpreter devices and in-house Interpreters to interpret for you and your carer at our hospital sites.

Remember to check the latest update on visiting restrictions. These may differ between healthcare settings and hospitals to suit the patient type and help us ensure the recommended social distancing to keep you and our staff safe.