TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — Doctors are warning not to skip appointments or avoid emergency care because you're worried about catching coronavirus.
Doctors at Capital Regional Medical Center say they're seeing patients forgoing necessary routine maintenance visits for fears of contracting COVID-19.
"I think a lot of folks are taking a pause," said physician Chris Tidwell, the director of operations at Capital Regional Medical Center. "They're pausing their routine followups with their primary care doctors and a lot of folks who are really ill are saying, 'Is it safe for me to come to the ER' and the answer is yes, absolutely."
CRMC says they've implemented special practices to help minimize any potential for patients to contract the virus while in their care.
Among them: four pillars for safety, including screening for all emergency care patients. Any suspected COVID patient would follow a special route of care, marked along an orange path. Those who complete COVID-19 screening without any virus indicators would follow a path marked in green.
Those who test positive for the virus would receive care from designated workers servicing only orange routes within the hospital.
Doctors also remind patients to contact their primary care physicians for routine care.
