Dear Families & Community, here at ENM we are working to take precautions to protect all of you, our team, and the rest of our patients and community. The information regarding COVID-19 is changing daily, as will our management.
You must legally wear a mask:
Per WA State mandate and to protect our care team, EVERY person coming into the clinic is required to wear a mask. The mask must actually cover the nose and mouth to adequately protect the clinic community from respiratory droplets, as both the nose and mouth are direct passages to the respiratory tract. The mask should fit properly and not be tented at the sides such that any protection it offers is neutralized.
For resources on proper mask etiquette:
Until further notice:
We are requesting that if you are acutely ill with a cough, fever, or respiratory symptoms that you please call the office. Please do not just come inside with these symptoms. Additionally, if you’ve tested positive for COVID-19 and have not isolated for 5 days, please do not come inside. HOWEVER, if you are experiencing respiratory distress, that is an emergency and may require that you go to the ER.
We are attempting to manage as much as we can over the phone, outside in the parking lot and/or via Telemedicine right now to minimize the potential exposure for our team and other patients.
Office Visit & Telemedicine Guidelines:
- In an effort to minimize having any of you leave your homes and come in to the clinic, Telemedicine is available to meet with your providers to continue to manage your care, provide counseling and mental health support, and address your ongoing medical needs
- We are deferring most acute visits to a telemedicine visit FIRST. If the provider recommends that you be seen, you will be scheduled for a time in the afternoon (we are separating ‘well people’ into the mornings and ‘symptomatic people’ the afternoons). When you arrive, please do wait in your car, check in for your appointment by phone, and the provider will come to you (see Car Visits below)
- We will be using a HIPAA-compliant Zoom platform via our EHR (Charm) to conduct our Telemedicine encounters
- You will be requested to complete a Telemedicine Consent Form online and will see a prompt regarding consent to this utilizing this platform when you sign-on for your Telemedicine encounter
- Medicaid and Private Insurance plans can be billed for these services and are not considered Preventive Care
Car Visits:
If you are coming into the clinic for symptom management, please do wait in your cars and we will come get you. Please do call the clinic to check in for your appointment. We will conduct a car visit and if it is necessary to have you come inside, we have a staircase alongside our building to sterilized treatment rooms that are set aside for this purpose. We want to make sure that we are not utilizing the shared lobby space to minimize exposure to newborns, pregnant people, and other vulnerable people in our clinic.
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What You Can Do:
HELP REDUCE THE SPREAD OF INFECTION
• Stay at home and away from others if you are feeling ill.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze, then throw the tissue in the trash and wash your hands.
• Clean and disinfect objects and surfaces frequently, especially frequently touched items such as small electronics, door handles, light switches, and sink handles.
Public Health is also reminding us that viruses such as COVID-19 don’t recognize race, nationality, or ethnicity. There are steps everyone can take to reduce the stigma that is being attached to the disease.
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Washington State DOH
The Washington State Department of Health has established a call center to address questions from the public. If you have questions about what is happening in Washington, how the virus is spread, and what to do if you have symptoms, please call 1-800-525-0127 and press #.
Links for more accurate information:
cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
www.doh.wa.gov/Emergencies/Coronavirus
www.kingcounty.gov/…/communicable-diseases/disease-control/…