COLCHESTER, Vt. (AP) - The University of Vermont Medical Center will be closing the operating rooms at its Fanny Allen campus in Colchester after staff members reported symptoms, including dizziness and nausea, the hospital announced Thursday.
Some employees also reported an odor near the operating rooms.
Hospital officials say the decision to close the rooms as of Nov. 17 was made out of an abundance of caution.
Operations scheduled for Fanny Allen will be transferred to other facilities.
The operating rooms were closed last year after similar reports. They were reopened in January after a variety of upgrades.
Air quality data has been normal during each incident.
Hospital President Dr. Stephen Leffler says the announcement is “incredibly frustrating.”
“While this was a difficult decision to make, especially in a year that has brought with it one crisis after another, the incidents have caused real anxiety for our employees and we believe this is the right decision,” he said in a statement.
Leffler said that unless the organization is able to determine a cause that can be clearly addressed, staff and patients will not return to the operating room or inpatient rehabilitation spaces.
The outpatient rehabilitation, urgent care and COVID-19 testing areas were not affected and they will continue to operate.
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