MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — Changing their business model to keep up with the coronavirus, an urgent care in Martin County and a private in-home care company are partnering up and doing something to prevent exposure of COVID-19 among the most vulnerable.
At Evergreen Private Care, dozens of nurses go into patient’s homes every day to examine them, keep them company, or help them with daily tasks, but coronavirus is calling for a new way of care.
“We all know that in order to flatten the curve, in order to prevent the possibility go exposure and limit exposure for our most vulnerable residents, the best thing to do is stay at home,” said Heather Holden, Administrator, Evergreen Private Care in Stuart. “This is a call to action for all of us.”
A call that the CEO of Treasure Coast Urgent Care and Treasure Coast Primary Care in Stuart is answering.
“Our patients that would normally come to our offices are at home, they want to be unseen, but they’re being told by the government not to come in and be seen,” said Robert Gluckman, Chief Executive Officer, Treasure Coast Urgent Care and Treasure Coast Primary Care.
Treasure Coast Primary Care has ramped up telemedicine calls with patients, but they need scrubs on the ground so to speak.
“They [patients] need refills, they need blood pressure taken, they need vital signs taken. They may have a new pain or feel a lump somewhere that requires a medical provider to go in and actually assess it,” said Gluckman.
Now patients that normally got checked out at Treasure Coast Urgent or Primary Care will have an Evergreen Private Care nurse visit them and provide these assessments while on a teleconference with a physician from Treasure Coast Primary Care. On the other side of that, Evergreen Private Care patients will also benefit because now their in-home sessions will include that conference with a doctor too.
Soon, both companies hope to be able to test for COVID-19 during those in-home visits. They hope other health care facilities will follow their model to continue to protect senior citizens from coronavirus.
“We are currently working with the Health Department. As soon as testing kits become available, we are going to be offering COVID testing in the home, again limiting exposure,” said Holden.
All nurses providing in-home care will be wearing Personal Protective Equipment to protect themselves and the patients. To find out how you can call benefit from these services, call Evergreen Private Care at 772-291-2990.
