Visiting Hours

At Osler we understand the importance of family presence in a patient’s healing and well-being. Throughout the pandemic, we have continually re-evaluated and revised our Visitor and Essential Care Partner Policy with the goal of always balancing the needs of our patients and their loved ones with the health and safety of all those who are cared for, work or volunteer at Osler. We have revised our Visitor and Essential Care Partner Policy to support more visitors and essential care partners (ECPs) on site.

Most visitors and ECPs are no longer required to show proof of vaccination and screening has shifted from active to passive, meaning visitors and ECPs must self-screen for COVID-19 or any flu-like symptoms and not come to the hospital if they are sick.

As a health system caring for some of the most vulnerable in our communities, Osler’s masking policy will remain in place until further notice. Wearing a hospital-issued mask while at Osler will continue to be mandatory for all staff, physicians, volunteers, patients and visitors before entering Osler’s facilities to ensure everyone’s ongoing safety.

Osler does offer a greeting card delivery service for inpatients at Brampton Civic and Etobicoke General. Please complete our greeting card request form, and one of our volunteers will make arrangements to deliver the greeting card to your loved one.

Visitor and Essential Care Partner Policy

Under the revised Visitor and Essential Care Partner Policy there is no limit to the number of visits per day or length of each visit as long as it is within visiting hours and the number of people at the bedside at any time does not exceed two. More details are as follows:

Patients admitted to hospital can have up to two visitors, 14 years old or older unless accompanied by an adult, at the bedside at any time during visiting hours of 12:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. Visitors can change from day to day.
Patients admitted to hospital with fundamental care needs (i.e. high falls risk, support needed for nutrition, positioning, toileting, etc.) can have two approved ECPs at the bedside at any time 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Inpatients at end of life or receiving palliative care can have up to two visitors at the bedside at any time 24 hours a days, seven days a week, as well as a spiritual care practitioner as needed.
Labour and Delivery, NICU and Paediatric patients can have up to two ECPs, 24 hours a day, seven days a week (patient decides if their doula is the second ECP).
Post partum patients can have one ECP, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Patients receiving care in one of our outpatient clinics, Emergency Departments or our Urgent Care Centre can have one support person if the patient is 18 years old or older and two support persons if the patient is 17 years old or younger.

Critical care exception:

Patients in critical care can have up to two visitors at the bedside at any time during critical care visiting hours of 10:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m and do not need to book their visit in advance.

COVID-19 positive or patients suspected of being COVID-19 positive:

Visits will be addressed on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the clinical manager

Support persons may be asked to wait in common areas such as our cafeterias or lobby areas due to the space limitations in many of our outpatient wait rooms. When possible, if support isn't needed, we ask that outpatients be dropped off and picked up.

With the exception of critical care, all inpatient visits must be scheduled to ensure physical distancing is maintained, especially in rooms with multiple patients. Visits will be scheduled between 12:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.

Is the visitor policy the same for the Reactivation Care Centre?

Yes, the visitor policy is the same for visitors to the Reactivation Care Centre, however the visiting hours are instead between 9:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. Please connect directly with the Reactivation Care Unit clinical team to make arrangements for your visit.

Are there situations in which I may be asked to postpone my visit?

Yes, the health and safety of our patients, their loved ones, and our staff, physicians, and volunteers is our top priority so depending on the number of patients in the room and size of the room, you may be asked to visit at a different time to ensure all safety protocols, including physical distancing, can be maintained.

What guidelines need to be followed when visiting?

If you feel unwell with either a persistent cough, shortness of breath, fever, soar throat, or flu-like symptoms or if you have been in contact with a family member (or recent contact) who is self-isolating or has been diagnosed with COVID-19, you should not visit. All visitors will be:

required to wear a mask, clean your hands frequently and maintain physical distance of two metres from others when possible
ECPs assisting with direct care needs could be asked to implement additional precautions
required not to eat or drink, even when in the patient’s room, as this involves removing your mask
asked to go to the unit or clinic directly and not visit other areas of the building

Which entrance should visitors use?

Please use the main lobby entrance when visiting either Brampton Civic, Etobicoke General or Peel Memorial. Outpatients and visitors can also enter at entrance B at Brampton Civic. For more information and for rates, see directions and parking.

Pre-planning visitors and scheduling a visit

In the context of visitor restrictions, it is strongly encouraged for everyone to discuss in advance of any hospitalization who they wish to visit if they are to be incapable of making that decision.

How do I schedule a visit with an Osler patient on an inpatient unit?

To schedule a visit, please call the visitation team between 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. Monday to Sunday at the location where the patient is receiving care:

Brampton Civic Hospital: (905) 494-2120 ext. 51297
Etobicoke General Hospital: (905) 494-2120 ext. 37617

Clinical Managers (or their delegate) will schedule all ECP visits following a discussion with the ECP.

If in-person visitation is not possible, please refer to the virtual visitation information to learn how to set up a virtual visit. We appreciate your patience as our staff do their best to accommodate visit requests.

Does the visitor identity need to be approved in advance?

Yes. All visitors must be pre-approved by the capable patient prior to the visitor(s) scheduling an appointment.

How and when does a patient approve who visits?

The capable patient can approve the identity of visitors once they are admitted to an inpatient bed by talking to a nurse or care provider.

What happens if the patient becomes incapable of identifying visitors?

If a patient becomes incapable of identifying visitors, their family will be responsible for deciding who the patient’s visitor will be. The patient’s family should confirm and inform the inpatient unit the patient was admitted to.

What should the family of patients who become incapable consider when approving visitors?

If a patient becomes incapable of approving their own visitors, their family should consider the following factors when approving visitors:

Had the patient communicated in advance who they would want to be their visitors?
Does the patient have an appointed Power of Attorney or Substitute Decision Maker who might be informed about who the patient might wish to visit?
Are there any legal restrictions, such as restraining orders or active legal proceedings that might influence the decision?
Does the patient have any known wishes regarding conflictual relationships or estrangements? If the wishes of the patient are unknown, families are encouraged to use their best judgment recognizing boundaries, as well as the needs of others.
Is there anyone who is not able to physically visit, due to proximity, severe mobility issues, or other health issues, such as immune status?
If a patient is at, or near, end of life, who can respond more urgently?
Can immediate family be prioritized over extended family?
Should intimacy of relationship be considered over formal or familial relationship?
Would consultation with another person be helpful i.e. a friend, community leader or spiritual health provider?

What happens if the family of a patient who becomes incapable disagrees on who the visitor should be?

The patient’s family will still be responsible for identifying the visitor. Osler’s Patient Experience office can help families make an informed decision, or if given permission by the patient’s family, make the decision on behalf of the patient based on factors to be considered – listed previously. The Patient Experience office can be contacted at 905-494-2120 ext. 56565.

Essential care partners

What is an ECP?

An ECP is an essential care partner, usually a family member or friend, who helps support patient care at the bedside, typically for patients at risk of falling and/or who need support in three or more areas of activities of daily living (e.g., eating, going to the bathroom, mobility, cognitive support, etc.). The decision as to whether or not a patient needs an ECP is determined in consultation with the patient’s clinical team. The ECP must be approved by the clinical team.

Is there a special weekly or monthly parking rate for ECPs?

Osler offers five-day, 10-day and 30-day flex passes. Each pass includes unlimited in and out privileges over a 24-hour period. Passes can be transferred between ECPs caring for the same patient (ECP and one alternate)

Brampton Civic: Buy flex pass from parking office at the east entrance of the parking garage
Etobicoke General: Buy flex pass from parking office inside the main entrance (next to elevators)

For more information and for rates, see directions and parking.

Virtual visitation

Is virtual visitation available?

Yes. Patients can use their own mobile devices through free guest access hospital-wide WiFi – available at all three hospital sites. We encourage patients to use their mobile devices for Skype, FaceTime and WhatsApp for virtual visits.

For patients who do not have a mobile device and want to set up a virtual visit, please connect with your loved one’s clinical team and they can make arrangements with the virtual visitation team or support you in using Family Chat on the Integrated Bedside Terminals (IBT) available in our patient rooms. To connect with your loved one through Family Chat, you will need to know the Location ID of the IBT.

Connect with a patient at Brampton Civic
Connect with a patient at Etobicoke General

If you are using a computer or laptop, the supported browsers are Chrome, Edge and Opera. Currently, only mobile devices with the Android 10+ operating system with Chrome are supported. Please note that if the patient’s bed location changes, so will their Location ID.

Are there any guidelines I need to follow during a virtual visit?

Electronic communication is vulnerable to cyber risk. To ensure the privacy and security of patients, virtual visits may not be used for discussions with the health care team. If you have questions for the health care team regarding your loved one’s care, please speak with members of the health care team separately via telephone.

To protect the privacy of all involved, the recording of virtual visits is prohibited. In certain circumstances, there may be the need to conclude a virtual visit to protect the privacy of others.