Understanding the New Policies and Procedures
As the United States begins to reopen some of its businesses, those of us who run those enterprises are asking ourselves what we need to do to make sure that any reopening is safe for our customers and clients. There has been a large variety of guidance from local, state, and national levels that can make it difficult to know what the best approach is for reopening, but the Chinese Medicine community in Oregon is incredibly fortunate to have a robust state organization that has been working tirelessly through this crisis to keep all of us up-to-date and also to distill all the garbled information into something actionable. So as we start the slow process of returning to business and getting a sense of our new normal, here are our new processes while we continue to navigate the Covid-19 reality:
Appointments will be spaced out and scheduled by phone
We will putting 30 minutes between each appointment to minimize crossover time between patients coming in for treatment, paying, and getting their herbs. Appointment times will still be their usual length but there will be fewer total appointments in a day. By reducing the total number of people who can come through the clinic at one time, we are able to help reduce potential vectors of transmission, and the added time gives us the flexibility to thoroughly clean between patients. In addition, we would like to find the best time for your appointment by talking to you directly. Please call the shop between 10am and 2pm to schedule your appointment. Telemedicine appointments will remain available for online scheduling as well.
Clinic Phone (971) 288-5939
Patients will be screened prior to seeing their practitioner
Patients should self-screen before treatment by asking themselves the following questions:
Have you been exposed to a person or person(s) with a known coronavirus diagnosis?
Have you or someone in your household had any two of the following symptoms in the last 48 hours: fever, chills, muscle pain, shortness of breath, cough, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell?
If a patient has answered yes to any of the above questions, they should call the clinic prior to an appointment to determine if they should come in for treatment or if the appointment should be delayed or shifted to a telemedicine format.
In addition, patients will have their temperature taken when arriving for their appointment. If their temperature is 99.5 degrees F or above, patients will be asked to reschedule.
Patients should wear a facemask to their appointments
Practitioners and staff will be wearing facemasks in the clinic, and we ask that patient’s do the same. Homemade or cloth masks are perfectly acceptable. We want to make sure that we take all steps to reduce airborne and particulate transmission as much as possible.
Touch Surfaces and All Patient Contact Points Sterilized after each Interaction
Acupuncture clinics are already required to maintain clean work environments like any medical office which requires the use of broad spectrum disinfectants on any surface that comes in contact with skin or body fluids. We have expanded this mandate to include all chairs, tables, handles and anything else that patients or practitioners are touching. In addition, we are temporarily discontinuing use of sheets or face cradle covers so that those surfaces are easier to clean and there are fewer points of potential contamination.
Patients will need to review and sign new, Covid-19 specific paperwork before their appointment
In keeping with guidance from our national associations and insurers, there is a Covid-19 specific form that your practitioner will review with you prior to your first appointment back and answer any questions you may have.
We look forward to seeing all of you again as we begin the long walk back to some version of regular life. Everyone at Root & Branch is committed to the safety of all our patients and staff and we ask for your understanding and patience as we get back to the business of health. Thanks for being part of our family.