Important festive updates for patients and visitors

To help bring patients and their loved ones together during the festive period, we are pleased to announce an extension to patient visiting times on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.  

Friends and family will be able to attend bedsides between and 11am and 8pm at both of our site – University Hospital in Coventry and the Hospital of St Cross in Rugby. Birth partners are welcome 24 hours a day as normal.  

For those visiting loved ones in General Critical Care, open visiting will be available between the hours of 10am and 7pm on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years’ Day.  

Normal visiting times – 2pm to 8pm – will resume from Friday 27th December.  

Car parking at both of our hospital sites will be free for visitors and colleagues from 10pm on Christmas Eve to 8am on Boxing Day.  

If you plan to visit over the Christmas period, please be advised about changes to opening times for some of our facilities, listed below.  

Changes to opening hours for our pharmacies across our sites:  

• The Lloyds Outpatient Pharmacy at University Hospital will be closed on 25th December, 26th December and 1st January. It will be open as normal on all other days during the festive period.  
• The pharmacy at the Hospital of St Cross in Rugby will be closed on 25th, 26th, 28th and 29th December and 1st January.  

Changes to opening times for restaurant facilities across our sites:

University Hospital, Coventry:

• Café Qualita, located at the Women and Children’s entrance, will be closed from 25th December to 29th December and on 1st January. It will be open as normal on all other days during the festive period. 
• Union House, located in the main reception opposite WHSmiths will be closed on 25th and 26th December and 1st January. It will be open as normal on all other days during the festive period.
• The main restaurant, located behind Union House, will be open as normal throughout the festive period. Subway, which is located within the main restaurant, will be closed on 25th and 26th December and 1st January.  

Hospital of St Cross, Rugby: 

• Poplar’s Place will be closed on the 25th and 26th December and the 1st January and open all other days over the festive period.
• The tea bar, located in Outpatients, will be closed om 25th and 26th December and 1st January.  

Patients who are staying at our hospital sites on Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day will have free access to the bedside TVs.  

To help us to continue protecting our patients and staff, we ask you to not attend if you have symptoms of flu, Covid-19 or other respiratory viruses, or if you have had any diarrhoea and/or vomiting within the previous 48 hours. 

Thank you for your continued support. We would like to wish our patients and communities a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.