Keeping loved ones from visiting our coronavirus patients is making them sicker

Nearly six months into the coronavirus pandemic, an emptiness lingers at the bedsides of our patients in hospitals wards and intensive care units. Though some hospitals are trying out limited visitation policies, most are not, leaving too many of our patients without loved ones at their side. The trauma to families, while difficult to measure, is immense, and the absence of loved ones is making things worse for patients and their medical care teams. It’s as if we have fallen back in time.