For visitors at Grand Strand Medical Center

Daily hospital visiting hours are from 9:00am to 9:00pm. You may enter the hospital through one of three entrances at the following times:

• Emergency room (ER) — 24/7
• Main building — 5:30am to 8:00pm
• South Tower — 5:30am to 8:00pm

Our daily maternity visiting hours are from 10:00am to 8:30pm. New parents may visit anytime.

Visiting hours for the intensive care unit (ICU) are from 9:00am to 11:00am, 1:00pm to 4:00pm and 8:00pm to 10:00pm.

In certain situations, staff may need to limit visiting hours for a patient. Reasons may include:

• Behavior presenting a direct threat to the patient, hospital staff or others in the immediate environment
• Court order limiting or restraining contact
• Current condition of the patient
• Disruptive behavior
• Extraordinary protections because of a pandemic or infectious disease breakout
• Health and safety of the patient's family
• Needs for a sterile environment
• Patient's risk of infection by the visitor
• Substance abuse treatment protocols requiring restricted visitation
• Visitor's risk of infection by the patient
• Wishes for privacy or uninterrupted rest time

Additional visiting guidelines

Visitors must be 12 years old or older, unless approved by the nurses' station. If you are visiting someone in the ER, you must be at least 18 years old. Unless there is a special reason why you need to wait with your loved one in the ER, it is recommended that you remain in your vehicle.

If possible, please do not bring bags or purses. Weapons of any kind are not permitted. All persons are subject to search, and the administration reserves the right to seize any unauthorized weapons or property.

Only two visitors are allowed for each adult patient, but visitors may switch throughout the hospital stay. While you are at the hospital, we ask that you follow these guidelines:

• Do not linger in the hallways or at the nurses' station.
• Do not take photographs and record videos.
• Do not visit your loved one with a cold or a cough.
• If a room curtain is closed, do not enter.
• If precaution signs are posted on your loved one's door, please see the nurses' station for guidance on entering.
• Keep noise level at a library level in the room and hallways.
• Limit your visit to 15 minutes or less.
• Live plants, cut flowers and latex balloons are prohibited in the ICU. Non-latex balloons are allowed.
• Please do not bring food or drinks. Due to infection control regulations, we cannot store anything in the hospital refrigerators.
• Use the chairs provided in the room or stand.
• Wash or sanitize hands when entering and exiting your loved one's room.
• Wear shirts and shoes.

Circumstances may allow for specific exceptions to any visitation restrictions described on this webpage. Those circumstances include religious visitation and a designated care person for a patient with a disability to assist with communication or other necessary components of the patient's treatment. All persons entering under an exception remain subject to appropriate infection control protocols.

If your loved one can do so, they should choose one family member or friend as a designated care person to be involved in their care plan and decision-making. This person may also serve as the designated spokesperson to communicate current health status among extended family members. Having this person in place will reduce the volume of calls that often prevent our nursing staff from properly caring for patients.

Furthermore, this person helps our staff with security concerns. We use a patient-specific passcode for security, and request that you have this number available when calling about your loved one. The designated care person should not give out the passcode, in order to protect their loved one's privacy.

When calling about your loved one, please contact the hospital's main number at (843) 692-1000. Provide their name and ask to be connected to the nurses' station.

Our hospital gift shop, Lori's Gifts, is available to visitors and guests. Our hours are Monday through Friday, from 9:00am to 8:00pm, and Saturday and Sunday, from 10:00am to 7:00pm.

Gift shop merchandise is designed to make your loved one's stay more comfortable. Items include:

• Balloon bouquets, including singing balloons
• Cards, magazines and books
• Clothing and accessories
• Custom gift baskets for adults and children
• Fresh flower arrangements, potted plants or silk plants
• Games and plush animals
• Picture frames
• Socks, slippers and robes

We also sell personal care items, including lip balm, lotion, hairbrushes, toothpaste and nail clippers.

You can earn points on all qualified purchases through our customer rewards program. Also, be sure to ask about our special weekly promotions.

Online orders

Place orders online for free same-day deliveries from the gift shop directly to patients in the hospital.

Phone orders

You may order gifts by phone during regular gift shop hours. There is no minimum purchase, and we will deliver within the hospital at no additional charge. All major credit cards are accepted. To make an order, please call us at (843) 692-4661.

Visitors, guests and patients can use our free wireless internet by downloading the MyHealthONE app.

If you or your loved one need support communicating during their stay, we provide auxiliary aids and services, including:

• Assistive listening devices
• Sign language and oral interpreters
• TeleTypewriters (TTYs) and Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDDs)

These services are available free of charge for effective communication. For assistance, please speak to any hospital personnel.

Waiting to hear about your loved one's surgery is made easier with our text updates. Register for patient SMS messages and receive information during their procedure.

Smoking is prohibited on all hospital property, including the use of cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and smokeless tobacco.