All healthcare staff members are responsible for enforcement of visitor identification and management procedures to ensure patient and environmental safety.

Institutional employees, primary care providers, and volunteers must wear official photo identification badges while on the facility premises.

Patient visitors (including family members) must register at the security desk at the institution and wear a visitor identification badge while on the facility premises.

Parents/legal guardians must present an identification band that matches the child or some other valid identification to identify them as family to the pediatric patient. Such identification will be needed to gather informed consent and to release child from the facility to parent/guardian care (see Chapter 82).

The institution establishes visiting hours and regulations to enhance child care, comfort, and safety (e.g., during flu season, visitors under the age of 14 years are restricted).

Notify the child and family members of visitation policies on admission.

Honor the family preferences for visitation and release of information per institution policy.

Limited visitation may be enforced because of child’s physical status; concerns of visitor’s questionable behavior by staff, security, or other patients; or as a result of court-ordered restrictions on visitations.

If limited visiting hours are instituted, provide the family with rationale for these limitations (e.g., change of shift report in the intensive care units to protect patient privacy). Always note whether the limitation of visiting hours significantly limits the amount of time family members can spend with their children. This is especially important if there are issues such as work or home responsibilities or transportation that limit family members’ ability to visit freely.

Encourage parents/legal guardians to participate in the patient rounds of their child. This facilitates communication and information sharing between staff and parents/legal guardians and recognizes the important role the family plays in the decision making and recovery of the child. Consider educating parents regarding “Ask Me 3” to assist in organizing their questions:

Parents/legal guardians should be offered the option of being present with the child during medical procedures and resuscitation efforts. Parents/legal guardians should be provided an identified healthcare facilitator before, during and after the procedure to support the family and ensure safety of family members and all those caring for the child.

Encourage overnight stay by one parent/guardian or another adult family member in all patient care areas where space permits.

Encourage sibling visitation after siblings have been screened for potential communicable diseases.

Inform visitors, including children, before their first visitation as to what they may see and hear during their visit, such as oxygen delivery equipment, traction, and so on.

An adult must accompany all visitors (younger than 18 years). The accompanying adult shall be responsible for supervising the child visitors and ensuring that they do not affect the privacy or safety of other patients.

Monitor the child’s response to visit and intervene as needed to ensure that the child is receiving adequate rest and quiet.

Be aware of the general profile of an abductor and implement hospital procedure (i.e., code pink) in the event of a suspicious visitor or potential/actual abduction.

Contact security services immediately and implement safety measures per institutional policy if the visitors become unruly, present a threat to the safety and well-being of the patient, the staff, other visitors, or other patients.