Bridgewater State Hospital

Visiting hours at Bridgewater State Hospital are:

• Sunday:                        8:00 am-4:00 pm
• Monday - Tuesday:     1:00 pm-9:00 pm
• Friday:                          1:00 pm-9:00 pm
• Saturday:                     8:00 am-4:00 pm

General Visiting Rules

Family and friends are an important part of the patient’s treatment and rehabilitation process, and Wellpath strives to create a family-friendly environment and a family-centered approach to recovery to ensure comfortable and meaningful family experiences. 

Please consider the following as you plan to visit a loved one at BSH:  All visitors must be listed on the patient’s approved visitation list. All visitors must complete a Visitor Application.  

Applications can be found in the Visitor lobby or by clicking here. Please submit your completed Visitor Application to the Safety Office at least 48hrs in advance of your visit. You can do this by one of the following: 

• Dropping the application off at the Front Control of the hospital 
• Emailing completed application to [email protected] 
• Mailing the application to: 

Attention: Safety Office
Bridgewater State Hospital
20 Administration Rd
Bridgewater, MA 02324

Wellpath supports healthy and safe family visits at BSH. With this said, children under 18 years old may visit a patient admitted to BSH if they are directly related to the patient (patient’s own child, child by marriage or domestic partnership, nephew or niece). Any child under 18 years old must be accompanied by the child’s parent or guardian and must provide a copy of the child’s birth certificate for entrance. All minor visits must be approved by the patient’s treatment team.

Visitation Meals

Families and approved visitors are permitted to order food to be eaten during visitation time. You must be an approved visitor in order to be approved to order meals. A visitor must be placed on a list of pre-approved family members in order to order food. 

This can be done by sending a request to [email protected] or calling 508-279-4511. You may order food from the following establishments: 

Bridgewater House of Pizza - 508 697-4862
Mee King Garden - 508-279-1228  

Meals can be arranged for any day of the week.  The order must be paid for before it arrives at BSH (i.e. by credit card via telephone).  You may only order food during the visit that you are participating in and may not order food to be sent for someone else.  Please use only your name and do not put the name of any patient on a food order as this is a violation of privacy and confidentiality.  

Orders cannot include any food with bones, beverages, chopsticks, glass, plastic or paper bags, or metal of any kind (including aluminum foil). Beverages may be purchased in the visitation room.  The delivery person will be instructed to leave approved food on top of the lockers in front lobby. 

Dress Code

• Undergarments must be worn. 
• Clothing shall not be ripped, torn, have holes or missing buttons. 
• Visitors are expected to dress in accordance with standards of decency acceptable in a public place. 
• Headwear is allowed only if pre-approved for religious purposes. 
• No jewelry is to be worn except a traditional wedding ring and/or one religious medal on a chain will be allowed and a medical alert bracelet (if applicable).
• No watches or wallets allowed. 
• Sweaters may be worn. 
• Hairpieces (i.e., toupees, wigs, extensions, weaves) may be worn but must be searched. It shall be the responsibility of the visitor to inform the officer that they are wearing a hairpiece during the search processing. 
• Garments with elastic waists may be worn. 
• Jackets or blazers may be worn as part of a suit or outfit by students participating in a clinical/internship program. 

The following items are NOT ALLOWED: 

• Boots worn above the knee (exception – boots below the knee are permitted October 15–April 15)
• Work boots
• Bare feet
• Bathing suits, shorts, any clothing with excessive pockets, metal, drawstrings, excessively baggy or tight clothing, hooded clothing, sheer, excessively revealing or transparent clothing, bodysuits of any type or wrap around shirts. (Children age 8 and younger may wear shorts)
• With the exception of undergarments, spandex, or spandex type clothing is not allowed
• Any clothing that displays a gang affiliation or is in any way attributable to gang culture; additionally, clothing that is obscene, racist, or displays sexual content
• Any clothing similar to that issued to an inmate or uniformed personnel, to include nursing scrubs, police, postal and utility (Class A active military uniforms are allowed)
• Fatigue or camouflage clothing
• Double layered clothing on the bottom half of the person (e.g. two pairs of pants, or skirts and slacks)
• Bibbed clothing of any type: shorts, dresses, pants, overalls, jumpers etc. (allowable for age 8 and younger)
• Hair accessories that cannot be easily removed to be searched
• Bobby pins, barrettes, and ribbons
• Umbrellas, jackets, coats, vests, or outerwear of any type
• Male visitors may not wear any type of blue or black jeans
• Earrings, facial/body jewelry, necklaces, bracelets, and watches are not allowed. The only exception regarding jewelry is a traditional engagement ring/wedding band, religious medallion and medical alert jewelry
• Dresses, skirts and skirt slits shall not exceed three inches above the knee when standing. No wrap-around style skirts are allowed unless worn for religious reasons
• Tank tops, halter tops, muscle shirts, or clothing that reveals the midriff or excessively exposes the back. Tube tops of any type are not allowed. Sleeveless clothing is not allowed unless covered by an article of clothing, such as a sweater, that shall not be removed
• Sweatshirts, sweatpants, wind pants, and exercise clothing (allowable for age 8 and younger)
• Clothing with zippers that go the full length of the garment with the exception of outerwear (allowable for age 8 and younger)
• T-shirts with offensive logos
• Leg warmers
• Hats and head coverings of any type, unless worn for religious or medical reasons; however they must be searched prior to entering the institution
• No electronic communication devices (e.g., cell phones, electronic devices) or those capable of storing information are allowed.
• No wearing or possession of any type of glitter make-up materials to include ChapStick or lip balms, facial make-up, nail polish, eye shadow etc.

You can’t call an inmate at the Bridgewater State Hospital, but they do have access to phones and are allowed to make monitored outgoing calls during approved hours. For complete details on how to call an inmate in Massachusetts, please click here.