MEDIA RELEASE: DRYDEN MEDICAL STAFF DEDICATED TO MAINTAINING EXCELLENT CARE

March 31, 2020

A letter from Dryden Medical Staff:

The physician group in Dryden is committed to providing ongoing essential care during the COVID-19 pandemic. As we move through this crisis as a community, care can be accessed in a variety of ways. We would like to update the community on some of the changes we will all be experiencing.

The Emergency Department will be staffed and open 24 hours per day for urgent and emergent patients. As always, patients will be triaged for urgency, and wait times will depend on the status of your issue. As our department gets busier with potential COVID-19 patients, patients with lower urgency could experience longer waits and may be encouraged to contact the clinic for assessment. All patients will be screened for COVID-19 risk factors prior to being seen.

The Dingwall Medical Clinic will be open for essential visits with patients being screened by our staff for COVID-19 risk factors. When possible, appointments will be provided over telephone or videoconferencing. These measures allow for limiting exposure to risk for our patients, physicians, and employees.

Inpatient care at the Dryden Regional Health Centre will be shared amongst our physicians in a way which best allows us to distribute work across the hospital and clinic, and minimize potential exposure to COVID-19. This means that patients may be seen by a physician other than their family doctor. Labour & Delivery care remains in place with anesthesia and C-Section coverage.

All elective surgeries have been postponed, however our surgeons remain on-call for urgent and emergent surgical needs. They are also continuing follow-up appointments in clinic, and potential cancer surgeries.

These are trying times for everyone, and we are dedicated to maintaining our excellent level of care. Our physicians are actively involved in planning for our response to COVID-19 alongside the leaders at DRHC.

Please remember to practice Social Separation, Stay at Home when possible, and Stop the Spread of the COVID-19 virus! Your efforts will make our Health Care stronger!!

For further information, please contact:

Doreen Armstrong-Ross
Chief Executive Officer
Dryden Regional Health Centre
Box 3003, Dryden, Ontario P8N 2Z6
Telephone: (807) 223-8201 Extension 2260

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