Schedule the Health Care You Put Off for COVID-19 – and Wear a Mask
Bates County memorial Hospital is completely Open for Business
It’s time to take care of our patients who had to delay care during quarantine for the COVID-19 pandemic. All services have reopened at Bates County Memorial Hospital and Family Care Clinic. To provide these services safely, BCMH and Family Care Clinics must maintain strict infection-prevention practices. In accordance with CDC guidelines, screening is still in place, and all who enter are required to wear a mask.
“Most of our patients are cooperative, but a few patients have resisted wearing a mask. They don’t believe the mask is doing anything,” said Greg Weaver, Chief Operating Officer and Family Care Clinics Practice Manager. “There’s a learning curve there. We explain that we wear our masks to protect you, and you wear a mask to protect healthcare workers and the general population.”
Infection prevention measures at BCMH and clinics will be ongoing for some time, especially as surge is occurring in local regions like Kansas City and Southwest Missouri.
“We recognize all of our patients and staff are at risk for COVID-19 infection, but the majority of our patients are in the age range at highest risk for serious infection and death from COVID-19,” said Carmen Matter, RN, CIC, Infection Control Coordinator at BCMH. “That would be for men and women ages 50 years and older, with ages over 80 accounting for more than half of Missouri’s current 966 deaths so far. Bates County Memorial Hospital and Clinics are doing their best to prevent spread of COVID-19 infection to our patients and staff. This includes wearing a mask upon entering our healthcare facilities at all times.”
Hospital and clinic staff are now diligently working to see that patients get back on track with vital screenings, surgical procedures, specialty visits, rehabilitation therapy services, and annual wellness exams. Support groups also resume in July, and a Royals Blood Drive is scheduled for July 1st. These are the hospital’s first public events since the beginning of the pandemic, and will be subject to the same safety measures taken in hospital with screenings, sanitation, wearing of masks, and physical distancing.
At BCMH, wearing a mask is only one of the tools in the strategy to reduce the spread of infection. Scheduling for additional time between appointments also helps reduce the number of people in the facility, and Telehealth will be an ongoing option.
For more information about BCMH, visit the website at www.bcmhospital.com.
