During their Monday live stream, officials from Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital announced the hospital’s outpatient services are now “open for business.”

Dr. Larry Kidd and Registered Nurse Dustin Ashenfelter discussed Henry Mayo Hospital’s reopening for business during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“All of our outpatient clinical services are open,” Dr. Kidd said. “Outpatient surgery is now open for business and we are here to serve you.”

Ashenfelter, who serves as Henry Mayo’s Director of Emergency & Trauma Services, outlined the emergency room, calling it open to all kinds of patients.

“We are a basic emergency department staff with physicians 24/7,” Ashenfelter said. “We’ll see anything from a heart attack, patients, stroke patients, orthopedic injuries, pediatric patients… So basically just all types of patients can come to our emergency room at any point in time.”

To keep the public safe in the emergency room, in regards to COVID-19, the staff has made a screening area outside of the pavilion.

“When you drive up to the emergency department, we have an exterior screening area,” Ashenfelter said. “We don’t want to bring everyone into the waiting room because we don’t know who is a possible, suspected COVID patient.”

Inside the emergency room waiting area, patients are expected to keep a six-foot distance. Staff is said to also consistently wipe down and disinfect the waiting area.

Emergency room patients are allowed visitors if they are necessary, including those who need assistance communicating, however those visitors will also be screened, according to Ashenfelter.

Henry Mayo employees are also screened when reporting to duty, with temperature tests.

“All the employees are required to have their temperature taken each to make sure that they’re not showing any signs of COVID-19,” Ashenfelter added. “So both visitors, patient side employees are all assessed, to ensure that everybody has safety, if something should show up, we would direct them appropriately.”

Paramedics and EMS personnel are also screened, according to Ashenfelter.

“If we do have a potential COVID patient that (comes) to the emergency department, we would place them in an isolation room, and they would be by themselves,” Ashenfleter added. “If you come to the emergency department for any reason, be assured you’re not going to be in a bed next to a patient with potential COVID-19.”

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