As this Coronavirus epidemic sweeps through Massachusetts, we have seen a decrease in the number of sick visits and well visits in the past 3 weeks. To isolate sick patients from well patients, we have already changed all sick visits to 9 am -12 pm and 5 pm-6 pm, and well visits to 1 pm- 5 pm. All visits need to be prescheduled by phone or email. Each sick patient with fever or respiratory symptoms will need to call on arrival and wait in the car in the rear parking lot. A staff member will bring in the patient via the back entrance to the second floor. As part of the Pediatric Physicians’ Organization at Children’s (PPOC), we are now able to schedule a virtual visit by video, using Zoom App on your smart phone. However, only those who have access to MyChart, the patient portal to our electronic medical record system, can schedule for such a visit.
So for patients who prefer to not come in to the office, we encourage you to contact our office and sign up for MyChart. For patients under 13, a parent (or a proxy) needs to sign up for access to MyChart. A patient who is 13 years or older needs to be active on MyChart him/herself. Both MyChart and Zoom apps should be updated to the most recent version.The following are instructions about steps to take to a Virtual Visit on your phone:
Step 1: Log on MyChart at the pre-scheduled appointment time. (Make sure Zoom app is also downloaded)
Step 2: Click on “Appointments” under Activities
Step 3: Click on "Pre-Visit Validation"
Step 4: Use Edit to correct any information in error, then click “This information is correct” to validate.
Step 5: Begin Visit and it would automatically open into Zoom Hit “Join Meeting”
For children who do not need vaccinations at a well visit, a “virtual well visit” can be done to review growth, nutrition, development, school, family and safety issues. We would need you to do weight, height and temperature measurements at home and answer the developmental questionnaire before the virtual visit, so that we can discuss them during the visit itself. There are even apps on the phone you can download to check a pulse (heart rate) and do height measurements. Of course, there are things we cannot do virtually, such as vaccinations, ear examination, throat, blood and urine tests.
Let’s utilize the technology and stay connected despite the epidemic.
Sincerely,
Pediatric Associates of Malden