PITTSFIELD, Mass — As respiratory illnesses begin to wane, Berkshire Health Systems is relaxing its masking policy for patients and visitors and has instituted changes in its visitation policy, effective on Monday, Jan 29. 

 

The updated masking and visitation guidelines impact all BHS care settings across the county, including Berkshire Medical Center, Fairview Hospital, the North Adams and Hillcrest Campuses of BMC, provider clinics, and the Berkshire Visiting Nurse Association.

 

"While the end of the holiday season saw a significant increase in documented respiratory illnesses in the Berkshires, recent weeks have shown an improving trend, which allows us to revisit our masking guidelines," said James Lederer, MD, BHS Chief Medical Officer and Chief Quality Officer. "As always, BHS has been monitoring the infection levels in our region so that we can act promptly and effectively to keep our patients, our staff, and our community as safe and as healthy as possible."

 

Under the updated guidelines, patients and visitors will no longer be required to mask, except for those who are symptomatic for respiratory illness. If an individual is symptomatic or has tested positive for COVID-19 in the past 10 days, they will be required to mask in any BHS care setting. 

 

BHS has also updated its visitor policy to continue managing the risk of infection within its facilities. The current BHS Visitation Policy can be viewed by visiting: https://www.berkshirehealthsystems.org/patient-resources/visitor-guidelines.

 

If individuals have tested positive for COVID-19 in the past ten days or have any respiratory symptoms such as fever, cough, sore throat, or runny nose, they should still not visit or accompany any patients for care.

 

These guidelines will be reviewed on a regular basis, and BHS will make adjustments based on the infectious disease data at the time.