These guidelines apply to patients having surgery at Surgery Center Cedar Rapids or St. Luke's Hospital.
Testing for COVID-19 before to your scheduled procedure is an important step to confirm your current health and promote your best possible recovery. Testing also promotes the safest environment for the healthcare workers who will be taking care of you. Per the current CDC guidelines, we are also testing anyone vaccinated for COVID.
Following your COVID-19 test, you must immediately isolate yourself from other persons who may be exposed or infected with COVID-19. It is very important that you follow these instructions after leaving the testing center and until you leave home the day of your procedure:
- Stay at home as much as possible
- Do not go to public areas or attend large gatherings
- You may work or go to school. Use social distancing – stay at least 6 feet apart from others, wear a mask at all times, and clean your hands frequently. When eating at work, social distance and eat alone if possible.
- Do not share dishes, drinking glasses, cups, eating utensils, or towels with other people in your home.
- Wash your hands often and practice good hygiene
- If you have been directly exposed to anyone who is positive for Covid-19, please notify us
- On the day of your procedure, if you have any symptoms of Covid-19, please call before leaving home.
Test Results: No news is good news!
- You will be contacted only if your test result is positive
- If you test positive for COVID-19, your physician will cancel your elective procedure
Signs of Illness to Report
Before having any procedure, you should be in good health. Notify your physician right away if you should develop any of the following symptoms:
- Fever of 100.0 F or greater
- Chills
- Cough
- Difficulty breathing at rest
- Sore throat
- Headache
- Muscle pain
- New loss of taste or smell
- Nausea, vomiting or diarrhea
Day of Procedure
- Wear a mask as you leave your home and enter the facility
- You will be screened for symptoms