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Wound Care Articles and Insights
March 18, 2020

The WCA COVID-19 Response

Mike Comer

As this unprecedented pandemic develops, my team and I are focusing on the same three priorities we have for over eighteen years; Our People, Our Patients and Our Partners.

We continue to monitor the latest recommendations of the CDC, regulatory updates and changes in local policies. As the circumstances continue to evolve, we will tailor our response to meet the ever expanding challenges we are all facing in these difficult times.

I wanted to share a brief overview of actions we have taken to date in each of those three areas of focus.

For Our Team Members and Families:

For over 18 years, the first rule shared with every new team member is “Family First.” If any employee is worried about themselves or their family, they will not be able to focus on our primary responsibility, our patients. In this challenging time, that has not changed.

  • All corporate offices have been closed with all departments working from home.
  • All employees will remain employed during this period.
  • A strict exposure policy has been implemented for our clinical team members.
  • We have expanded our sick day bank for each employee to protect our team financially.
  • A “Team Check” task force has been developed to check in and assist all employees and their families in case of exposure to or contraction of Covid 19.
  • A weekly communication update has been established to keep our response transparent to all members of our company.

For our Patients:

Our centers remain open, where allowed, with minimal staffing to help assist in reducing the burden for both patients in need of wound care and the partner hospitals we work with. The following precautions and services have been implemented nationwide to protect both our team and the patients we serve.

  • A remote call center has been developed which contacts every patient prior to appointments for screening of potential exposure and symptoms of Covid 19.
  • A temperature and verbal screening prior to entering the wound center has been implemented.
  • Our company has stood up a Telemedicine program staffed with our clinicians and physician teams to assist in monitoring patients who are unable to visit a center.
  • A Patient task force has been formed to contact high-risk patients and those missing appointments to keep track of their progress and needs.
  • Our logistics and operations teams are handling calls from centers where patients are facing difficulties in receiving supplies, care, or other challenges to help develop solutions.

For Our Partners:

As resources, personnel and patience are stretched thin at our partner hospitals during this crisis, we remain committed to being the best partner in the industry. We stand ready to help in any way we can. Current actions being taken are:

  • Utilizing our teams to address in-patient wound needs.
  • Expanding the use our call centers to assist with other departments and service lines.
  • Utilizing telemedicine teams to address patient concerns remotely.
  • Our video and editing departments have developed messaging for partner hospitals.

As this unprecedented challenge continues to develop we will adapt our response to focus on these three areas of responsibility. If you have any questions, or if our team can assist in any way, please contact us at 888.484.3922 at the link here.

Sincerely,
Mike Comer

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