I wanted to let everyone know what I am doing to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
I AM OFFERING VIDEO SESSIONS AND
PHONE SESSIONS FOR ANYONE
WHO WOULD LIKE TO MEET
USING TECHNOLOGY
Additionally I am keeping up on how the virus is transmitted so I know what kinds of precautions I need to take. As far as scientists understand it now (3/19/20, the date I am writing this) the coronavirus cannot be routinely transmitted through normal breathing. It CAN be transmitted through sneezing or coughing, just not normal breathing. Transmission through breathing (rather than coughing or sneezing) is called "aerosol transmission" (see this article for some good info: https://www.statnews.com/2020/03/16/coronavirus-can-become-aerosol-doesnt-mean-doomed/). You will see in the article that there have been some documented cases of it becoming an aerosol, but those are thought to be unusual. Given the pattern of spread to date, scientists are inferring that transmission was not aerosol but rather droplets. Here is an article published 3/18/20 that shows that there may be conditions where the virus can linger in the air for up to 3 hours. However, the levels of the virus in that situation seem unlikely to infect anyone (https://www.biospace.com/article/novel-coronavirus-is-stable-on-surfaces-for-hours-days-nih-study-finds/)
So most likely what we need to protect against, which is still very difficult, is surface transmission. This is where someone coughs or sneezes onto a surface or touches their eyes, nose or mouth and then touches a surface. This virus does seem to be pretty hardy on surfaces, existing possibly for days. So I am wiping surfaces that may be touched by clients between appointments and washing my own hands between each appointment.
I am also happy to provide appointments which are spaced more than 3 hours from other clients. This will allay any fears there could be ANY aerosolized particles still in the air. Currently, I am using a rotating pedestal fan to vent the room in between clients. If you chose this option, you can be seen in a time-slot that is more than 3 hours after any other client so there will be zero risk of any aerosolized transmission. This is in addition to the surface transmission precautions being taken.
I am also monitoring myself for symptoms including taking my temperature twice a day. Of course we know that you can transmit this virus while still not having any symptoms so this is not a perfect precaution.
At this time I am still offering in-person appointments so long as you do not have any health conditions (diabetes, heart disease, immune compromise, etc), are under the age of 60, have not traveled to an outbreak area in the past 2 weeks and are currently symptom-free. I am also offering video sessions or phone calls for clients who do not meet these criteria yet still prefer to stay at home.
When coming to the office, please be aware I am part of a larger health clinic on this floor of the building. Our entire clinic is OSHA certified. We use hospital-grade disinfectant. I have been trained by OSHA on the prevention of pathogen transmission and am using best-practices on a daily basis. As a health-care facility (we also provide medical visits and physical therapy), we are exempt from closing. Additionally, we never have more than 10 people in our office at any given time. For these reasons we feel we are not a threat to the public health at this time.
The entire suite is being disinfected 4x/day including:
- Front and back door handles, inside and out
- bathroom light switches
- bathroom toilet flusher handles
- water knobs on sinks handrails in bathrooms
- soap dispenser tops in bathrooms
- handrail on staircase for front door
- water cooler touch controls (both PT area and Dr. Jordan's waiting room)
- coffee machine controls Dr. Jordan's waiting room
I am also disinfecting chairs between clients and using sterile linens on the couch and couch pillows which are being changed after each use.
Again, if you prefer to be seen via video conferencing or via phone call I am happy to provide those services.
Please stay well, wash your hands often, avoid social contact when possible and let’s all hope this passes sooner rather than later. I am anticipating up to 8 weeks of precautions will be needed so it may be a while.
Best,
Dr. Jordan
