Someone asked me earlier this month how I am feeling as we begin to reopen our services. Having worked on our efforts to reopen for weeks I know we are ready. So my response was, “I know things will go well because we planned to reopen our services with everyone’s safety in mind.”
Planning allows hospitals and healthcare providers to reopen and to care for COVID-19 patients. Planning lets small businesses be ready when their customers return by making sure they are providing safe environments. Planning efforts means gyms, daycares and campgrounds can make adjustments to reopen this month. Similarly, planning allows all of us to maintain social distancing, wear appropriate masks in public places, and use appropriate hand hygiene. I hope you can see why I know things will go well as we continue to reopen for business. I am confident that when we all work and plan together, we will be able to manage the spread of COVID-19 and reopen our businesses.
In spite of fewer patient visits and the financial losses created by discontinuing elective procedures and surgeries, OhioHealth remains committed to our associates. We have not reduced pay or furloughed employees. We are just one of a handful of healthcare organizations across the country to do so. Continuing to pay our team was the right thing to do, and I am proud OhioHealth allowed us to do so. Our healthcare team remains intact and is committed to providing you with the high quality care and service you have come to know and trust from OhioHealth.
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We are working hard to get you back into the office to see your physician and reschedule postponed procedures, screenings, and surgeries. We know many people are worried about their safety, and we are doing everything possible to keep you safe. We are offering telehealth visits to provide care remotely, taking temperatures of everyone entering our buildings, making physical changes to support social distancing, testing patients for COVID-19 prior to some procedures, wearing appropriate PPE, asking all visitors and patients to wear masks, and much more.
Thank you for all the planning you have done and will do to help all of us get through this pandemic. Keep up your personal efforts on social distancing, hand hygiene, and mask wearing. Please know, our planning and hard work is focused on your safety.
As always, please reach out to me if you have questions, feedback, or suggestions.
Stay safe and healthy,
Tim A. Colburn President, OhioHealth Berger Hospital
tim.colburn@ohiohealth.com (740) 412-6515