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Scroll down to see the latest updates and click the button below to subscribe to The Pulse to get regular updates from RCMS directly to your email inbox. |
PLEASE CALL BEFORE YOU COME (707-884-4005) for Urgent or Primary Care COVID-19 Testing Given the shortage of test kits, we are following the Public Health Department protocol and guidelines regarding who will be tested. Not everyone is tested. Given the current lab turnaround time, it could take 7+ days for us to get the results. If you are tested, you will be instructed to follow the Public Health Department’s self-isolation guidelines that are provided to us Urgent Care Main Gualala Building, for the time being, is converted into an Urgent Care only facility. While our focus is those with respiratory issues, Urgent Care is still seeing all other urgent/emergent medical conditions. We have divided Urgent Care into respiratory and non-respiratory zones in an effort to keep patients safe. PLEASE CALL FIRST so that we can direct you to the appropriate clinic for your care. Once you arrive at the facility, you will be received at the Triage tent outside and the nurse there will guide you to the appropriate location in our facility. Primary Care We are also available, think it is important, and want to continue to provide access to Primary Care services This can be done in couple of ways. If you are able to come into the clinic:
If you are not able to come to the clinic:
Please note that a clinic visit for getting medical care is not restricted under shelter in place guidelines. You are still allowed to visit your medical provider. Our providers and support staff are following appropriate guidelines regarding wearing protection gear. All our facilities are regularly disinfected as required RCMS Contingency Plan We continue to update our contingency plan as COVID-19 related situation evolves. These include, but are not limited to:
We, at RCMS, are focused on keeping our community safe and healthy during this stressful time. And we very much appreciate all the help and support we are getting from the community. PLEASE FOLLOW ALL THE GUIDELINES GIVEN TO US BY THE PUBLIC HEALTH OFFICIALS The Dental Office will be closed, except Monday and Wednesday from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. for emergency treatment. For the health and safety of our staff and our community, non-urgent dental treatments have been postponed until an unknown date. This determination will be done on a case by case basis in order to decide whether the dental facility is an appropriate setting to provide the necessary services needed. Please call our dental facility at (707) 882-2189 before coming in.
Urgent Care Focus has been on taking care of urgent care patients , especially those with respiratory issues. Urgent Care is still seeing all other urgent/emergent medical conditions, and we have divided the clinic into respiratory and non-respiratory zones in an effort to keep patients safe. PLEASE CALL BEFORE YOU COME. Primary Care We are also available, think it is important, and want to continue to provide access to Primary Care services. This can be done in a few ways. If you are worried about leaving your home and are sheltering in place:
If you are able to come into the clinic:
We also will be looking through our medical records and you may get a call from us if your provider thinks it is important to have either a Telehealth or in person visit. We want to keep you and our community healthy! Thank you. Ara Chakrabarti, CEO Both Mendocino and Sonoma Counties have been ordered to shelter in place. Get the officel details from the county sites at: Mendocino County: https://www.mendocinocounty.org/community/novel-coronavirus Sonoma County: http://sonomacounty.ca.gov/CAO/Press-Releases/Health-Officer-Orders-County-Residents-Shelter-in-Place/ Ara Chakrabarti, CEO will be a guest on Peggy's Place on KGUA 88.3 FM on Wednesday March 25. Tune into 88.3 FM at 9:00 am for the live show, replay at 1:00 pm and you can stream online from their website at KGUA.org. If you missed the interview you can catch it here https://soundcloud.com/kgua/ara-caharabarti-and-barb-britell-rcms-covid-19-update-32520
All upcoming gatherings have been cancelled in accordance with the recommendations from the CDC on the Coronavirus (COVID-19) including the upcoming Board of Directors meeting, Hospice Talk, and Healthy Habits course. We will post notice when this changes.
Dear Mendonoma Community:
I am writing this advisory to inform you of changes RCMS is making to our normal procedures in preparation for the possible influx to our Urgent Care of higher numbers of patients with respiratory distress and related symptoms. These steps are proactive, to prevent overwhelming our Urgent Care. 1.The Gualala Clinic will expand its Urgent Care (UC) space. It will be staffed by two providers. The first will attend to UC patients. The second provider will provide UC back-up as needed, while seeing primary care patients as time permits. 2.Non-Urgent Care/ Primary Care (e.g. normal primary care follow-ups, particularly for more pressing primary care issues) will be performed at Sea Watch (39150 Ocean Drive) and Point Arena. Sea Watch and Point Arena may have 2 providers at once. 3.Triage Tent: We have erected a tent in front of Urgent Care (for all triage) and a tent behind the parking lot for use for possible patient overflow. (Note: Triage is the process of sorting people based on their need for immediate medical treatment) RCMS will start sending all respiratory/flu/cough/cold patients to the Gualala clinic. We are also strongly encouraging all patients (not just cough/cold/flu) to call 707-884-4005 before coming in. This will allow us to properly triage and isolate possible Coronavirus patients, as well as reduce risk of contaminating our other clinics. CORONAVIRUS TESTING: We are NOT testing everyone nor doing screening for patients not showing any symptoms. Due to limited testing supplies, we have strict protocols for testing and non-testing, made by the providers on a case by case situation. If you are tested, you might be sent home to self-quarantine until your coronavirus test returns. Currently this is a 72 hours turnaround process. RCMS will exercise appropriate treatment protocol depending on the test result. MASS CASUALTY PLAN: In the event that acutely ill patient numbers stress the system, we will shift to have more Providers doing Urgent Care duties. We have placed a treatment tent behind the parking lot for patient overflow. In addition, we are cooperating with the Coastal Life Support District (CLSD), the Fire Department, and Health Department to make future plans for this emergency. OUR STAFF AND STAFF FAMILY HEALTH: We are actively monitoring the health of our staff. We will use the same protocol regarding testing/treating our staff. Our staff are wearing personal protective equipment consistent with protocols provided by the CDC. RCMS understands that Coronavirus presents a challenging and stressful time for all Mendonomans. We are monitoring changes on a daily, even hourly, basis. We want you to know that RCMS is here for you. The RCMS staff and board urge you to be kind, calm, and patient with each other. Ara Chakrabarti Chief Executive Officer Redwood Coast Medical Services, Inc. PO Box 1100 Gualala, CA 95445-1100 www.rcms-healthcare.org [email protected] Tel: (707) 884 - 4050 Due to the recent recommendations by the state, the Community Resources Connection (CRC) office is closed until further notice. There will be no rides available. (707) 884-9215 for more information.
Effectively Immediately: In our continuing effort to be prepared for the COVID-19 Coronavirus the RCMS Dental Clinic is accommodating emergency patients only. This determination will be done on a case by case basis in order to decide whether the dental facility is an appropriate setting to provide the necessary services needed.
Please call our dental facility at 707-882-2189 before coming in. In our continuing effort to be prepared for the COVID-19 Coronavirus, RCMS has set up a triage tent outside of the main entrance to the Gualala clinic. If you are coming to the clinic, you will be asked if you have flu like symptoms with respiratory distress. If so, you will be asked to go to the triage tent first. Based on the triage, you will be brought into appropriate area in the clinic. You are still strongly advised to call first (707-884-4005) before you come to the clinic so we can we appropriately prepared when you come in. Also visit https://www.mendocinocounty.org/community/novel-coronavirus, and https://socoemergency.org/emergency/novel-coronavirus/ for current county specific information and updates. See updates from RCMS on our COVID-19 page. |
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