id	author	title	date	pages	extension	mime	words	sentences	flesch	summary	cache	txt
cord-252473-i4pmux28	Rogers, Sharon	Why can't I visit? The ethics of visitation restrictions – lessons learned from SARS	2004-08-31		.txt	text/plain	1908	83	42	It could be argued that visitation restrictions, in light of a potential outbreak of a contagious disease, are ethically sound because of the compelling need to protect public health. In a health care institution, visitation restrictions not only affect inpatients but also have an impact on ambulatory patients who must come for diagnostic tests or interventions and who, if deprived access, might develop urgent or emergent conditions. Furthermore, to be consistent with expectations of transparency, the criteria by which exceptionality to the rules of visitation restriction exists should also be published openly throughout the organization for staff, patients and visitors. For example, although current policy allows for specific times of visitation and numbers of visitors per day, a sudden outbreak might dictate a quick lockdown of the facility without patients or family members receiving prior notice. It is ethical to accept that public health protection trumps individual rights to liberal visitation.	./cache/cord-252473-i4pmux28.txt	./txt/cord-252473-i4pmux28.txt