March 2, 2022 @ 4:45 p.m.
Every Tuesday, Sherrill Brown, M.D., Medical Director, Infection Prevention; Olivia Lee, Manager, Legislative and Advocacy Affairs; and Denise Gomez, Benefits Specialist, Human Resources, update our clinic and corporate lines of business leaders.

You can listen to the recording here.
Employee Appreciation Week

Your commitment to AltaMed, our patients, and communities has not gone without notice. We recognize the tremendous effort each and every one of you has put forth.

In recognition of you and all that you do, we are celebrating AltaMed Employee Appreciation Day, Friday, March 4. Human Resources will be raffling items, such as gift cards, Beats headphones, Nintendo Switch, and mini iPads. Each employee (regular full-time and part-time) will be included in the drawing. Prizes and employee ID numbers will be randomly selected every hour on the hour from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on Friday and the complete list of winners will be published in the March 8 issue of The Beat.

Once again, Thank You to all our valued employees!
Ongoing Safety Guidelines While at AltaMed

  1. Wear your masks—Face masks are to be worn at all times over your nose and mouth (except when drinking or eating), and should be stored properly or discarded. Patients need to wear masks at all times in examination rooms as well.
  2. Maintain hand hygiene—Staff should have easy access to hand sanitizer dispensers to clean hands frequently, and should wash their hands for 20 seconds at a time.
  3. Practice physical distancing—Stay six feet apart from other individuals whether inside or outside.
  4. Wipe down any work surfaces you touch.
  5. If employees need to be within six feet of someone for a prolonged period of time, wear a face shield and face mask in both administrative and clinical settings—avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth. In addition, a face shield and face mask need to be worn at all times when interacting with patients.
  6. Employees must wear appropriate PPE when on site. 
Booster Question and Appointments

We continue to receive questions around employee boosters. Please refer to the FAQs and the COVID-19 Alert as your questions may have already been answered.

Recent Booster Question
Q: What happens if an employee does not get their COVID-19 vaccine booster?

A: If an employee does not get their COVID-19 vaccine booster, the employee would be violating our policy requiring all health care employees to be fully compliant with vaccines and boosters. Therefore, this employee would need to decide if they want to continue staying employed in AltaMed and agree to policy or not.

Make Your Booster Appointment
  • Email Employee Health.
  • Call Employee Health at (323) 765-6153.
  • Contact the Employee Health lead at your respective clinic.

If You Receive the Booster Outside of AltaMed
How to Talk to Patients About Getting the COVID-19 and Flu Vaccines

Thank you to the staff at AltaMed General Pediatrics at Children's Hospital Los Angeles for their work on an educational video instructing staff on how to discuss COVID-19 vaccines with patients and community. This video is for internal use only as it can help you as you communicate with your patients.
 
Keep in mind that we are still in the flu season, and with the easing of mask-wearing guidelines, patients, both young and old, can still get the flu. Please encourage all your patients to get vaccinated.
Grand Rounds Update

Sherrill Brown, M.D., Medical Director, Infection Prevention, presented at the COVID-19 Treatment, Vaccine Updates, and Q&A Grand Rounds on Tuesday, March 1. 

Topics Discussed:
  • Updates to Testing
  • Update on COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
  • Updates on Data for Myocarditis and Vaccines during Pregnancy
 
Resources:
 
Video Presentation Timestamps
  • Presentation: 0:00 – 32:45
  • Q&A Session: 32:46 – 35:20

Providers: All COVID-19 Grand Rounds materials and recordings can be found on the Provider Portal Grand Rounds on Town Square.
Free Support and Resources Offered by CalHOPE
 
In partnership with CalHOPE, Health Education and Wellness is offering free crisis counseling and other support services to patients, employees, and community members affected by COVID-19. Informational cards have been distributed to all clinics and PACE centers.
 
For questions about this initiative or to request more cards, contact Michelle Madrid, Manager, Health Education and Wellness. 
Questions and Communications

We welcome your questions, suggestions, and input. We do review each question and respond appropriately, so please continue to email us—click here. Know that this is a safe space and most questions will be answered individually prior to being shared anonymously with staff.

How to Stay Informed

FAQs
  • Click here to read the most recent FAQs.
  • Refer to the weekly FAQs in earlier editions of the COVID-19 Alert to see if your questions have already been answered.
Please Note: If you are contacted by the media with questions about the coronavirus outbreak or for any other reason, email Christina Sanchez, Vice President, Public Affairs. 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, call Christina at (310) 420-1135. If you'd like to read news releases from AltaMed, visit our external website, AltaMed.org under Newsroom.