Department of Public Health’s North Central Health District announced two patients have tested positive for COVID-19, one in Bibb County and one in Peach County. Navicent Health can confirm that both patients are in our care at The Medical Center, Navicent Health. With respect for each patient’s protected health information (PHI) and in compliance with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), we will not provide further details about either patient.

We can confirm that each patient is being well cared for and – for the safety of other patients, visitors and staff – were isolated upon presenting for care. Strict measures have been put in place to ensure that patients receiving care at Navicent health are not at increased risk of contracting COVID-19. Specifically, we want to let you know the following:

At Navicent Health, we routinely care for critically ill patients with communicable diseases and we are prepared to care for anyone who may present with COVID-19.

Patients presenting with suspected cases of COVID-19 are isolated in a controlled environment.

The Medical Center, Navicent Health has very specific protocols in place to treat patients who are exposed to certain serious infectious diseases, such as COVID-19.

Patients are physically separated from other patient areas and we use unique equipment and infrastructure to provide an extraordinarily high level of clinical isolation.

The safety of each individual in the communities we serve remains our top priority.

Patients who depend on The Medical Center, Navicent Health for care are not at an increased risk of contracting COVID-19 within our hospital.

Our team has been preparing for weeks for the first case of COVID-19 in central Georgia, and our highly skilled and expertly trained staff stand ready to provide care for those we serve in this uncertain time.

Our hospitals remain open to provide care to our community. We have been and will continue to screen patients at clinical points of entry into the Navicent Health system in order to identify those potentially carrying COVID-19.If a patient is identified, we will isolate that patient and work closely with the Department of Public Health to perform additional tests while providing care

For details on our current visitation policy, please click here. Navicent Health may update this visitation policy as the COVID-19 situation develops, and will notify our community if we do so.

As a healthcare organization, it is our moral obligation to always use our expertise, training, knowledge and gifts to provide extraordinary care to others. We are honored to have the privilege of caring for these patients.

We remind our community to continue to take measures to protect themselves from COVID-19.

Wash your hands often with hot water and soap.

Use hand sanitizer if hand washing is not an option.

Avoid close contact with others by practicing social distancing.

Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects people frequently touch.

If a person is concerned about respiratory symptoms and believes they have come in contact with someone with COVID-19, they may visit their primary care physician or an urgent care center. If a person is having difficulty breathing, they may also visit an emergency center. For life threatening emergencies, call 911.