As reported yesterday by our President & CEO, YKHC has been preparing our staff, facilities, and communities for COVID-19 for several weeks. These preparations include mandatory staff health screenings, staff training on proper usage of personal protective equipment (PPE) and training our health aides to test for COVID-19 in village and sub-regional clinics.
Currently, all five sub-regional clinics, and an additional five village clinics, have tests kits locally available. Due to yesterday’s unfortunate announcement that Ravn is suspending village flight service across the state, YKHC’s plan to deploy test kits across the region this week is slightly delayed. However, pending flight and cargo availability, YKHC is reassessing our plan to deploy test kits to villages and hopes to have them locally available across our health system as soon as feasibly possible.
It is important to remember that testing for COVID-19 does not change treatment plans, as there is not a cure or medication for the virus at this time. If a patient is concerned about a lingering fever, cough and shortness of breath, call your local village clinic before arriving in person. The health aide will conduct an over-the-phone assessment, in coordination with YKHC providers and the COVID response team, to determine if a COVID-19 test is necessary.
Please read YKHC’s COVID-19 website to learn more about preventing exposure, spread, and the latest regional news and information: www.ykhc.org/covid-19/
Thank you for helping us to take care of you and those you love.