Public hospitals retool for safety as rules change
From plexiglass windows at check-ins to isolation rooms for possible COVID-19 patients, the city Health and Hospitals agency has revamped all its facilities for the postcoronavirus outbreak world, according to a top official.
“We’re open and we’re safe,” Dr. Andrew Wallach, chief medical officer of ambulatory care for city Health and Hospitals, told the Daily News on Sunday. “We’ve taken every precaution that we know of to make sure that [patients’] experience, that their visit to one of our facilities, is one of safety.”
The changes will be noticeable from the moment a patient enters one of the city’s 11 publicly run hospitals or 30 clinics, he said, and come as the city prepares for Phase 2 of reopening on Monday.
All staff and every visitor over the age of 2 will be required to wear a face mask, and the use of gloves will be encouraged. Both kinds of coverings will be available free onsite.
The new measures also include tall, plexiglass sneeze guards at registration and welcome areas (photo).
Further, everyone who enters the facilities will get their temperature checked.
If someone is running feverlevel temps, a possible COVID-19 symptom, he or she will be taken to an “isolation room” and triaged.
With Health and Hospitals using phone and video calls instead of in-person visits more than ever before, hospitals and clinics will have more space for patients, Wallach said.
Traditionally, doctors worked out of one or two examination rooms per shift, Wallach said. They’ll now have two to three rooms available, freeing up space and time. “Our goal … really is to minimize to the extent possible any waiting in those waiting rooms,” the doc said.
While non-COVID services were available through the outbreak, in-person visits dropped amid increased use of telemedicine, and health officials expect such visits to increase gradually. The department will continue to heavily use telemedicine, Wallach said, with a goal of conducting 20% of visits in-person starting Monday.
“We will slowly increase that percentage or ratio of in-person visits,” he said. “That said, telemedicine is here to stay. This is something actually that we had been working on pre-COVID and perhaps COVID expedited the timetable, if you will.”
In-person visits include elective surgery, which was canceled under a state executive order during the height of the coronavirus outbreak. Health and Hospitals did not state how many such surgeries have to be rescheduled.
For patients who do seek inperson care, tape markers will show them where to wait in line while maintaining social distancing. Waiting rooms have been redesigned, with some seats marked off to make sure people don’t sit too closely to one another.
Public hospital sites are also planning to reserve early-morning appointments for the elderly and people who are immunocompromised — groups especially vulnerable to COVID-19. “We’re really excited that we’re going to be welcoming back even more patients actually physically into our facilities,” Wallach said.