View as Webpage July 22, 2020 @ 4:55 p.m.

Today's Weekly COVID-19 Briefing (Recorded at 7:45 a.m.)

Every Wednesday, Dr. Sherrill Brown, Medical Director, Infection Prevention, Berenice Constant, VP, Government Relations, and Elizabeth Sepetjian, AVP, Talent Management (HR), give an update for clinic and corporate line of business leaders. You can listen to today's recording here .

Sherrill Brown, MD

Berenice Constant

Liz Sepetjian

Questions & Communications  We welcome your questions, suggestions and input. We do review each submission and respond appropriately, so please continue to email us— click here . Know that this is a safe space and that most questions will be answered individually prior to being shared anonymously with staff. We also encourage you to review communications, such as the Wednesday-only COVID-19 huddles, COVID-19 resource and policy pages on Town Square, our website altamed.org/coronavirus , and any regular emails you receive. FAQs posted below may not be comprehensive, so please check the FAQs in each weekly alert to be sure your questions have not already been answered. Click here to read this week's FAQs (Week of July 20) All Employees - FAQs Managers - FAQs

Q & A of the Week Q: Is there a possibility to create outdoor break areas using canopies/tents with tables/chairs for eating lunch? Even with some physical distance, it seems unsafe to allow multiple people to be eating in the same break room together (both at the clinics and corporate offices). A: New areas are being considered for break and lunch periods. Please continue to distance yourself (at least six feet) from others while on break and lunch, and choose to sit in less crowded spaces when break rooms are at capacity.

Local City and County Updates on COVID-19 Los Angeles County For the third consecutive day, the Department of Public Health (DPH) confirms there are more than 2,200 hospitalized patients with COVID-19. Test results are available for over 1,559,000 individuals, with a positive rate of 9.6 percent. Of the new cases reported by DPH today (excluding Long Beach and Pasadena), 57 percent occurred in people under the age of 41.   Orange County Orange County now has the second-worst coronavirus outbreak in California. The cumulative COVID-19 case count in Orange County was 29,986 as of Tuesday, just ahead of Riverside County’s 29,983. Only Los Angeles County is higher, with nearly 160,000 cases. All Orange County schools expect to start the school year with online classes.   City of Los Angeles The number of infections continues to rise. Los Angeles Unified School District is expanding the community-centered education model district-wide.

Isolation Guideline Changes and Testing Strategy Updates AltaMed continues to closely follow the ever-changing COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on our communities. We are actively monitoring the number of available beds in hospitals in both Los Angeles and Orange counties. To date, there has been some improvement in hospital bed availability, with LA County having the capacity to take in new patients with COVID-19.   The guidelines for ending isolation for individuals with COVID-19 has changed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health (DPH) both continue to recommend a symptom-based approach for those who have previously tested positive for COVID-19 and no test of cure needed once the patient has met the criteria.   Updated Criteria Can discontinue home isolation when at least 24 hours have passed without a fever and without the use of fever reducing medication At least 10 days have passed since the symptoms first appeared and symptoms have markedly improved Individuals who have had a severe illness or who are immunocompromised should wait 20 days until their symptoms are markedly improved   Testing Strategy AltaMed has two outdoor testing sites: AltaMed Medical and Dental Group–Anaheim (1325 N. Anaheim Blvd.) AltaMed Medical and Dental Group–Commerce, Goodrich (972 Goodrich Blvd.)   Currently we are doing about 300 tests a day, which are primarily taking place outside of the Anaheim and Goodrich outdoor evaluation centers. Please reserve scheduling into our testing sites for patients with active symptoms of COVID and conduct testing for asymptomatic individuals at our clinic locations.   Due to high demand, we are prioritizing COVID-19 testing for current AltaMed patients. Current patients can call the AltaMed Patient Service Center at (888) 499-9303 and one of our representatives will assist in scheduling an appointment with a provider or obtaining a referral for a COVID-19 test.   All community members who are not AltaMed patients need to go to the  Los Angele s and Orange County public health websites to find a location and make a reservation for COVID-19 testing.

We’re Here For You, Now More Than Ever   We have many teams throughout the organization planning and creating protocols and procedures to ensure everyone’s safety. These are ever-changing times, so we must remain flexible and adaptable as we continually review and update our policies to align with these changes.   We continue to follow the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and have implemented the following: Staff and patients are screened for COVID-19 symptoms prior to entering any AltaMed office or clinic Staff are required to properly wear face masks at all times Staff must maintain their physical distance, six feet, from one another – both indoors and outdoors Providers and staff are required to use personal protective equipment (PPE) in clinics Hand sanitizer stations are available for employee use; regular and thorough hand washing is also expected All work areas are cleaned daily and cleaning products are available for employee use All high-touch areas are cleaned with approved disinfectant a minimum of three-times each day HEPA air filtration systems have been installed in many clinics Comprehensive signage has been placed throughout every AltaMed location Screensavers reminding employees of safety measures are on computers and office screens Patients are required to wear masks before entering our clinics Examination rooms are cleaned and sterilized before and after each patient visit   We are currently in the process of fulfilling the following: Plexiglass protective shields are being placed in clinics to maintain safe distancing at reception areas We are revisiting and measuring every office and clinic to determine how to limit physical distancing or office sharing   We will continue to share updates via our weekly COVID-19 Alert, The Beat (employee e-newsletter), The Lead (management e-newsletter), and memos from our leadership team, as well as other communication channels such as Town Square and AltaMed.org. Please speak with your supervisor should you have any concerns. We welcome your questions, suggestions, and input. Again, thank you for all you do, all you have done, and all you continue to do. We're here for you, now more than ever.

Volunteers Needed for CMA-sponsored Free PPE Distribution In an effort to ensure California physicians can continue to provide care to patients during the COVID-19 outbreak, the California Medical Association (CMA) is partnering with the State of California and Altais to provide  free medical-grade personal protective equipment  (PPE) – including N95 and surgical masks, gowns, gloves and face shields – to small- and medium-sized medical practices across the state.   AltaMed will support the event by gathering volunteers to help the week of July 27 at different locations and times. If you would like to volunteer, please complete the volunteer registration form attached here . For additional information, please click on the FAQ here .

2035 Camfield Opens Second Screening Station for Employees Only On Monday, July 20, a second screening station was opened at the 2035 Camfield campus for employees coming to work. Located by stairwell three near the parking structure, this screening station will allow employees to use the stairs to access their worksites on the 2nd and 3rd floors to help reduce the wait times in the main lobby and for elevators. The second screening station will only screen employees from 7:30 a.m. to 8:25 a.m. with badge access enabled to access the 2nd and 3rd floor stairwell doors.

AltaMed In the News Dr. Efrain Talamantes, COO of Health Services, was recently featured on the July 14 NBC Nightly News national segment discussing the rise in COVID-19 cases in the Latino community. To view the entire segment, please click here (the AltaMed segment begins at 17:55). On July 15, Dr. Talamantes was also featured in the California Health Care Foundation's (CHCF) An Intimate Look at the Pandemic Learning Curve, which examined the successes and challenges facing clinicians during the pandemic. Dr. Talamantes is a former CHCF Leadership Program fellow. To view this segment, please click here . For more of AltaMed in the news, please visit altamed.org .

Media Opportunity for AltaMed DACA Recipients   We are collaborating with photojournalist Ivan Kashinsky on a story for National Geographic to highlight Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients working on the health care frontlines during the COVID-19 pandemic in Los Angeles. If you are interested in being interviewed and photographed for this project, please contact Veronica Orozco , Senior Manager, Public Relations.

Taking the Time to Say Thank You As many of our employees are going above and beyond, particularly over the last few months, it's more important than ever to say thank you. Please take a moment to recognize and praise those we work with. The AltaMed Rewards and Recognition Program was designed to engage employees and promote AltaMed's company values. This program allows you to recognize fellow employees within or outside of your department.   To nominate a peer, visit Town Square - Human Resources/Benefits - Employee Rewards & Recognition. Don’t overlook the importance of an act as simple as providing praise. 

Please Note: If you are contacted by the media with questions about the coronavirus outbreak or for any other reason, please email Veronica Orozco , Sr. Manager, Public Relations. The Public Relations team monitors all media coverage of AltaMed (social and traditional platforms) to uphold our reputation. If you have questions and concerns regarding media coverage, please call Veronica at (323) 482-3073. If you'd like to read news releases from AltaMed, visit our external website, AltaMed.org under Newsroom.