First & foremost, we would like to extend our most sincere wishes to you, your families and loved ones that you are safe and healthy, and are making it through this crisis without too much hardship. Fortunately, the staff at H & D Physical & Occupational Therapy are healthy at this time. Since the onset of “shelter in place”, we have been offering significantly reduced office hours supplemented by Home Visits and our New TeleHealth and TeleWellness services. Given that NY State Department of Health considers PT’s and OT’s to be an essential service and more of us are ready to return to work, we will be gradually expanding our office hours and reopening all of our offices. This will be for patients who require our services in person and are comfortable coming to and returning to the offices.
We are reopening our Midtown office and expanding staffing and hours at our 88th St and Yorkville offices on Monday May 18, 2020. We would like to make you aware of the following precautionary procedures that have been instituted to ensure everyone’s safety. Given the ever changing nature of this situation, certain aspects of these protocols may change over time.
In accordance with New York State Department of Health laws, everyone who enters the office will be required to wear a face mask. Our entire staff will also be donning face masks.
We will provide hand sanitizer to everyone who enters the office, and will require each individual to thoroughly wash and/or sanitize hands upon entry.
We will take the temperature of every individual entering the office utilizing a no-touch infrared thermometer. If an individual is found to have a temperature above 99.6 F, s/he will be asked to reschedule their appointment for another time and be instructed to contact their primary care physician (PCP).
We will observe recommendations for physical distancing by spacing out appointments to avoid having more than 1 or 2 patients in the waiting area at any time (depending on which office you go to). Following initial screening, you will be escorted to a private room or the gym depending on individualized treatment and/or therapist.
We will observe all recommendations for infection control regarding the cleaning procedures of all surfaces that patients and therapists come in contact with.
We request that you attend your visits alone. We recognize that there may be situations when this is not possible. If that is the case, we request that you inform us at the time you are scheduling your appointment. We will address each circumstance on an individual basis. The assessment will be done by our clinical policy and procedure team which has been set up in advance to address these type of issues.
In summary, our COVID-19 safety protocols are as follows:
- Prioritizing Cleanliness: All rooms and high touch areas will be disinfected frequently. Disinfectants, hand sanitizer, and related supplies will be available to staff and patients at all times. Staff will open doors for all patients, and wash hands between each patient interaction.
- No ‘waiting rooms’: Patients will be asked to arrive when it is time for their appointment to avoid waiting.
- Staggered Appointments: We will be staggering the appointments to ensure adequate time to wipe down spaces in order to maintain a safe and clean environment.
- Screenings: We will be screening patients over the phone and at the time of their appointment to ensure they are healthy.
- Reduced & Healthy Staff: Any of our staff who can work virtually will be working outside of the office, and all staff will be screened daily to ensure they are healthy.
- Protective Equipment: Our staff and patients with appointments will wear a mask and gloves at all times. We ask that all patients come to their appointment with a mask!
If you have any questions concerning the information contained in this correspondence, please feel free to contact us at anytime. Thank you for your cooperation in these matters. We really have missed and look forward to seeing you when you feel safe in returning!
Sincerely,
Entire Staff of H & D Physical & Occupational Therapy
