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A LETTER TO OUR PATIENTS & FAMILIES — 3/15/20

We realize that this is an anxious time. School closures, schedule disruptions, empty store shelves, alarming news reports, and, in case anyone forgot, a pretty heavy influenza season are causing worry for us all. Addressing our children’s fears and questions, worrying about our aging parents or grandparents and fragile neighbors, while juggling job concerns and trying to find toilet paper and hand sanitizer feels overwhelming.

Join us in taking a collective deep breath. The doctors and staff at East Portland Pediatrics are here for you, not only for medical care but as a source of reliable information, health guidance, sanity, and hopefully a smile as well. We would like you to focus on a few things:

Take care of yourself and your family

• Wash your hands well and often.

• Don’t touch your face, especially eyes, nose and mouth. 

• Cough into a tissue or your sleeve.

• Stay away from large groups.

• Get plenty of sleep.

• Get outside; nature is good for body and soul.

• Keep the news turned off when kids are around.

• Cover your BASES* (see sidebar).

Take care of your community

• Stay home if you are sick.

• Practice social distancing.

• Check on your elderly neighbors, family and friends. Ask if you can get them food, medicine or anything else they need. 

EPPC is doing everything we can to keep you, our staff, and

our community safe

• We are screening patients carefully.

• We are staying abreast of the evolving information and recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Oregon Health Authority.

• We will be keeping sick and well patients separate: separate rooms, separate entries, separate staff.

• We are cleaning intensely and often. 

• We are looking into Telehealth options as a way of doing some visits without you needing to be at the office.

Here is what we ask of you

• If your child is sick, call us first! You may need an appointment, but most often the best thing will be to stay at home.

• If you have a life-threatening issue call 911, but otherwise do not go to the Emergency Room; this could put you or others at risk. Call us first!

• If it’s 3:00 am, call us first! We have pediatric advice nurses awake and available even in the middle of the night.

• We are handling a high number of calls, and triaging as needed. Please be patient with us.

• Keep your scheduled well care appointments. 

• Keep your children up to date on their shots. We want everyone staying as healthy as possible.

• If your child has not yet had their flu shot this season, please do so as soon as possible. This protects your child, and protects the community by not putting a greater strain on diminishing medical resources.

Your EPPC physicians will help you through this crisis, as we have so many times in the past. Our doctors were on the front line of H1N1 infection — we made it through that, and together, we will make it through this. Oh, and go ahead and let that breath out, then repeat. You got this!