There are a lot of questions surrounding whether or not DoorDash delivers to hospitals, especially with the ever-changing rules surrounding Covid-19 protocols. So, the answer to this question does depend on a few different factors.
In this article, we’ll examine in greater detail whether or not DoorDash still delivers to hospitals.
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Does DoorDash Deliver to Hospitals?
DoorDash does not currently have any available guidance about delivering to hospitals on their website, other than a press release touting a free DashPass program for all hospital employees. People have shared in online forums, however, that, yes, DoorDash does deliver to hospitals.
Does DoorDash Deliver Directly to Hospital Rooms?
Whether or not DoorDash can be delivered directly to a hospital room will mostly depend on the hospital’s current rules. During the Covid-19 pandemic, any visitation directly to rooms is typically extremely limited.
For this reason, a DoorDash delivery or any other delivery would usually be taken to the hospital lobby or nurses’ station. From there, the hospital might take it directly to the patient’s room themselves.
Some doctors or hospitals may also limit what outside food, if any, can be brought to patients if, for example, the patient has a health condition that may be adversely affected by certain foods. There may be other reasons a doctor or hospital would limit outside food, as well, such as allergies of nearby patients.
In case the hospital does limit food to patients, it is important that the customer verify with the hospital that ordering food delivery is allowed before they place the order. The DoorDash driver may want to ask the customer if this step has been taken, and if not, may want to request it before spending time on this order.
Also, to ensure the DoorDash driver can find the hospital room quickly, make sure to read the tips below under “Special Considerations for Delivering to a Hospital.”
Does DoorDash Deliver to Hospital Staff?
DoorDash has had a program for delivering to hospital staff called Corporate DashPass. Shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic escalated in the U.S., however, DoorDash also announced an expanded free DashPass program in the U.S. and Canada for hospitals and healthcare workers.
The program was announced in April of 2020 and provides a free DashPass subscription for 60 days to any employee of a hospital.
Other than these two programs, DoorDash does not currently have any specific guidance on their website about delivering to hospitals or their staff.
It is probably safe to assume that an order can be delivered to the lobby, but just as with delivering to a specific room, it is definitely best if the instructions can be very clear and specific. Again, the customer should keep in mind that they should specify where to park, what building and level to go to, and exactly where and who to go to for delivering the order.
This will save the DoorDash driver time, and keep the hospital staff happier with promptly delivered, still-hot food.
Safety Precautions for Delivering to Hospitals
Whether a DoorDash driver is delivering an order to a hospital during the Covid-19 pandemic, flu season, or any other time, it is always important to remember that hospitals are places that treat all kinds of illnesses and emergencies.
During the pandemic, DoorDash instituted many safety measures, which would apply in a hospital as well as anywhere else.
The main safety measure is to wear a mask anytime that the DoorDash driver is in close proximity to a customer or merchant. The mask must cover from the bridge of the person’s mouth all the way down to below their chin, thereby covering both their nose and their mouth.
DoorDash drivers also are advised to wash hands frequently and to use hand sanitizer. Customers are advised to discard packaging and wash their hands afterward.
Contactless delivery, where an order is dropped off without any customer contact, is the default option during the Covid-19 pandemic. Contactless delivery to a hospital, however, is probably not possible, or at the very least, highly impractical.
So, it is especially important to wear a properly fitted mask and follow all other safety precautions when doing a DoorDash delivery to a hospital.
Other Special Considerations for Delivering to Hospitals
Hospital complexes can sometimes be very large with many multi-story buildings and multiple parking areas.
For a DoorDash driver, it is very important to be as efficient as possible, so that his or her overall pay per hour doesn’t suffer. It would be very aggravating for the DoorDash driver if he or she has unclear or incorrect information about precisely where to deliver the order, and instead is spending a lot of time wandering around a hospital complex trying to figure it out for himself or herself.
The customer probably would be pretty unhappy with the long wait and cold food, as well!
If a DoorDash driver receives an order to a hospital, whether it is directly to a room or to hospital staff, it would be advantageous to check with the customer and/or hospital directly to confirm the delivery instructions.
For example, if the delivery is requested directly to a room, ask the customer and/or hospital to confirm that a delivery directly to a hospital room is allowed. If it is allowed, confirm where to park, what building to go to, which floor, and then where to go from there.
If it turns out that the delivery cannot be made directly to the room, or the delivery is for hospital staff, it would still be helpful for the customer to let the DoorDash driver know precisely where he or she can deliver the order and how exactly to get there, whether that is the lobby or somewhere else.
Will DoorDash Deliver to Hospitals?
Although DoorDash does not currently make any guidance available on their website about delivering to hospitals – other than a press release promoting a free DashPass program for all hospital employees – people have shared in online forums that, yes, DoorDash does deliver to hospitals.