Getting the Medical Care You Need During the Pandemic

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published a report that found almost 41% of US adults have avoided getting medical care because of concerns about COVID-19.  The survey, which was conducted online during the last week of June reports that even 12% avoided urgent or emergency care.  Doctors say the decline in getting proper healthcare since the start of the pandemic has resulted in increased deaths.    

While delaying or avoiding routine medical care may not directly have the same negative impact of not getting emergency care, medical experts explain that it interferes with managing chronic conditions as well as detecting new conditions.  It also interrupts routine care such as vaccinations.  Moreover, the group that most often postponed routine or urgent care were those most at risk for complications from COVID-19 due to preexisting conditions, and would have greatly benefitted from care for those conditions.  

After learning a lot about dispensing care in the time of COVID-19, many doctors have gone back to in-office visits along with telemedicine visits.  In fact, medical providers around the country are trying to determine the right balance of being seen in person or seen remotely, and how it may vary from one specialty to the next.  For instance, Robert Bart, a physician and chief medical information officer at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, says the Center is working “with our specialists and primary care physicians along disease states to figure out how care should be delivered for patients who have diabetes or lupus.”  However right now, doctors stress the most important thing for patients to remember is to continue routine care and to take the proper steps to deal with medical emergencies.   

MorningStar at Arcadia is a beautiful senior community that offers Phoenix assisted living as well as memory care.  Our community was designed from the ground up to compassionately and professionally serve seniors, and we help residents get the care they need when they need it.  Please see our website for more information.

MorningStar at Arcadia proudly provides the very best in senior living with our unique mission statement of “to honor, to serve, to invest.” With a foundation built on honoring God, valuing all seniors and selecting staff with a felt calling to serve, we create a true home for residents amid a beautiful setting. Please contact us to learn more about our Phoenix assisted living and memory care community.

Sources:  cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/wr/mm6936a4.htm

statnews.com/2020/09/01/telehealth-visits-decline-covid19-hospitals/