READY TO RESUME — The campus of Weirton medical center is shown in this file photo.

WEIRTON — Weirton Medical Center will be reopening its doors for outpatient services this week, following approval from the state to begin selective surgical procedures on Tuesday.

“This declaration from Governor Justice permitting outpatient services comes at the perfect time for WMC since we were already preparing to resume more surgical procedures,” said Kelli McCoy, WMC communications director. “Patients will see some limited changes in the way services are offered but we expect to be much closer to standard operations in the coming weeks.”

Brooke and Hancock counties continue to have low reported numbers of positive COVID-19 patients as compared to state and national averages, with a total of 14 cases identified for the two counties as of late Saturday.

“As we prepared for the worst case, our team at WMC did a fantastic job gearing up for a large influx in critically ill patients that fortunately hasn’t occurred here. We are now using those preparations and inventories of (personal protective) equipment to work towards getting back to normal operations as soon as permissible” McCoy added.

Starting this week, the expansion of outpatient operations will include physical, occupational and speech therapy, radiology, physician offices, breast care and wound treatment. WMC Home Health is also taking referrals for in-home medical care and walk-in X-ray services at WMC will be back up and running as well.

WMC will continue with limited visitation for inpatients and has modified facilities to provide for physical distancing in patient waiting areas. Consistent with the guidelines issued by the state, patients will also be provided with a mask or encouraged to bring one from home. Some areas will see minor delays in between scheduled visits to allow time for WMC’s staff to properly clean and disinfect any equipment.

“No one should be afraid to visit WMC or any hospital because of COVID-19,” McCoy said. “As a key medical provider to the region, we are more than capable of safely providing the daily health care our community has come to depend on while protecting and treating any critically-ill patients at the same time. It’s what our team at WMC does every day and will continue to do long after COVID-19.”