Dear Patient:
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Thank you for trusting us with your eye care. As you know, during the past few weeks, a novel (new)
corona virus named SARS-CoV-2 has swept through our country and the world. The virus has been
shown to cause a severe respiratory disease known as COVID-19. The pandemic created by the virus has
caused us to change our way of life. Public gatherings have been replaced by social distancing, and the
fear of the unknown has brought our society to a temporary standstill.
The current events in the world have caused changes in every aspect of our healthcare system. These
changes have affected hospitals, emergency rooms, and outpatient clinics. Our ophthalmology practice
is implementing new protocols to screen our patients before entering the office and to socially distance,
as much as possible, our patients upon arriving to our office. Some of our new procedures will include
the following:
SCREENING:
All patients will be screened for possible exposure to the corona virus BEFORE entering our office.
Confirmation phone calls and emails will be made prior to your appointment and will include some
questions to help ascertain the level of risk of exposure for each patient.
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Do you have a fever or any symptoms indicative of a respiratory infection, such as a cough or difficulty breathing?
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Have you come into contact with anyone who has tested positive or been designated presumptively positive for COVID-19?
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Have you or anyone you know traveled outside of the country in the past several weeks, particularly to areas of the world which are labeled as high risk by the CDC, such as China, Iran, Italy, Japan and South Korea?
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Have you or anyone you know traveled domestically to states with high numbers of infected patients, such as Washington, California, or New York?
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If any of the screening questions is answered positively, the patient will be asked to temporarily cancel
their appointment and call their primary care physician for further evaluation.
OFFICE PROCEDURE AND PRECAUTIONS:
Due to the recommendation of social distancing, we will be reconfiguring our appointment schedule and
waiting room to accommodate our patients. We will create a safer environment by limiting the number
of people in the practice at one particular time and spacing out waiting room seating. In the event of a
particularly busy period, we may ask you to wait in your car or at home and contact you by phone when
it is your time to be seen. We can also do this by request for elderly patients or those with chronic
medical conditions. You may be asked to wash your hands upon entering the office, as well.
DISINFECTION:
Rooms and instruments will continue to be thoroughly disinfected between each patient with alcohol or
EPA-registered disinfectants currently recommended for use against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Please feel free to ask any questions when you are contacted by our office about your appointment. We
will do everything within our power to help create a safer environment and allow our practice of
medicine to continue during these troubling times.
Sincerely,
Brian Salzano, M.D.