Susan McBride wishes she had a hazmat suit with a “front trap door” for quick breast exposure. That way, she jokes, it wouldn’t have worried her so much when she recently went for her annual mammogram.
As a 14-year breast cancer survivor, McBride, 55, an author from St. Louis, MO, is diligent about going for her regular scans. At first, when her appointment was postponed due to the coronavirus, she was relieved that she wouldn’t have to leave the COVID-free cocoon of her house, especially since she has a 7-year-old daughter.
“我很认真地考虑这种病毒，因为它是一个再用的吓人，变异，杀人机器，”她说。“儿科炎症性疾病成分让我的熊妈妈雷达翻转出。我不想带任何东西带回家时，我已经做得很好，到目前为止保护我的家人。”
Yet she needed the mammogram to give herself peace of mind. So when her doctor’s office reopened, she decided to take the chance.
保持安全，麦克布莱德取得了今天的第一个约会之一。一旦在乳房中心，她不得不把她的温度;有一个贴在她的衬衫指定她要去，并给出了一些在接待处，在那里每个人都在适当的PPE齿轮办理入住手续。
除了她自己的面罩，她花了额外的预防措施。“我穿我的眼镜，所以我不会擦我的眼睛，一切都进行的手提袋，所以我没有离开我的上衣和胸罩背后，”她指出。
The waiting room was set up for only a handful of people and chairs were turned to prevent anyone from sitting closer than six feet. "But," she laughs, "no one else was even there.” McBride kept her bag wedged between her knees, so it wouldn't touch the floor. She also reapplied sanitizer after she touched anything.
当她看到她的医生，他们共同的空气拥抱“因为自三月中旬我拥抱的唯一的人是我的丈夫和女儿，”她说。在身体检查，她的医生戴着手套，他们都戴着口罩。“我们聊了几分钟后，整个房间彼此。”
到家后，麦克布莱德“净化”，留下她的鞋之外，在洗涤和淋浴倾销的衣服。“我擦了我的车内饰的一切都是在我的手提包，并把它放在车库里，”她说。“我觉得我成功了！”然而，她并没有停止令人担忧，直到她没有症状五天后任命。
A Whole New (Hospital) World
For the past three-plus months, people have delayed routine visits, elective surgeries, tests, procedures, and even necessary treatment out of fear of being in proximity to others and going to medical facilities where they may risk coronavirus contamination. But now, as restrictions ease, doctor’s offices, clinics, and hospitals are starting to schedule patients—albeit with new protocols to keep everyone safe.
这是什么意思，到底是什么？一方面，没有更多的在等候室（他们已经被移除）细读杂志。另一个原因是，朋友或家人可能不会被允许陪你咨询或程序。底线：所有的改革是为了使患者和提供者，这些前所未有的时期健康，尤其是在癌症中心和那里的人免疫功能低下。
“医生看到病人为了少decrease crowding in waiting rooms. Staff will be wearing masks and rooms will be more readily sterilized in between patients than in the past,” explains Stephanie Bernik, M.D., Chief of Breast Surgery at New York’s Mount Sinai West.
督办公室也试图尽量减少从一个房间到下一个转移，因此，尽管你可以在咨询室被转移到在过去的考场之前见过的人，一切都在现在的考场进行。
Dr. Bernik also reassures her patients: “For those needing essential services such as chemotherapy and mammograms, as well as surgery, we have created safe, clean, and dedicated spaces that are completely separate from the areas where Mount Sinai is treating COVID-19 patients.”
A Checklist of Changes
这是可以理解的，有这么多的恐惧比病毒，人让其他健康问题数月下滑杰奎琳·琼斯，医学博士，纽约耳，鼻，喉专家和头颈部外科医生说。不过，她强调说，“现在是让你健康的最好的地方，保持你的免疫系统健康的，因为我们都再度出现的时间。”
Be reassured, says Dr. Jones, “as physicians, we are trained to provide a high level of cleanliness, so patients should feel comfortable entering their doctor’s offices.”
“变化很可能会继续，直到有一个广泛使用的疫苗，”梅根Werdel，医疗保健合规咨询公司，谁写COVID准备计划40办公室为基础的手术中心灰色＆Co. Inc.的副总裁说。“选择性手术可再次悬浮如果存在的另一个波新冠肺炎.”
当然，每个办公室都会有自己的定制协议，但在这里就是你可能会看到：
Staff will be wearing gloves, masks, and face shields.
有可能是在办理登机手续，你和任何登记人员之间的分区。
Face coverings will be required for all patients over the age of two.
Patients may be asked to wait outside or in their cars and will be texted when it’s their turn.
You may have your temperature taken and be asked screening questions.
成年患者可能将不得不看到自己的文档。未成年人和那些律师的医疗力量仍然应该允许一个客人。
If a waiting room is utilized, chairs will be removed to facilitate six feet of social distancing. You will no longer see magazines, pillows, or other frequently touched items.
等待时间可能会增加，由于增加清洁。
Patients undergoing surgery may require COVID testing in advance.
虚拟访问可能变得越来越流行。
什么，你现在可以做
Remember that you are your own advocate. Before going to your doctor, ask about new procedures. Many hospitals, including Mount Sinai and the Mayo Clinic, have posted videos, checklists and updated information about how to safely go to the doctor in this new normal.
患者应看到明显的指示作为办公室是如何管理和下面的CDC指南盖尔Trauco，R.N.，亚特兰大，GA，说肿瘤护士和病人的倡导者。说起来，告诉经理办公室或你的医生，如果你发现任何不符合。“如果你收到一个贫穷的，不留神的态度，告诉医生，‘Trauco说，’如果医生不解决您的问题，您可能希望找到您关心的另一个做法。”
这里有一些事情可以做，以确保您的访问顺利进行：
未雨绸缪。在预约之前在网上填写你的摄入量形式。这将限制你的脸对脸的接触和时间在办公室。
变通。As offices reopen and elective procedures are allowed, it will take some time for all canceled appointments to be rescheduled because of the backlog. Note: Many offices are staying open longer or adding additional days to their schedules, says Werdel.
Be patient.Wait times may be longer, but this is because healthcare workers are cleaning everything between visits.
可用时，使用非接触式付款方式。一些办事处不再办理信用卡或保险卡，做这一切在网上或通过手机上的扫描应用程序。
体贴。Do not cancel at the last minute or be a no-show as appointment times will be limited and others need care as well.
Still Worried?
尽管所有的新的安全措施，这是正常的感觉anxietyover whether you could catch the coronavirus from your doctor’s office.
丽莎埃里森，一个弗吉尼亚州的夏洛茨维尔，作家与多个自身免疫性疾病，已经有一个轻微的恐慌症发作而在流感大流行在拥挤的商店购物，并推迟了推荐的腹部超声近两个月，由于担心另一个。
Before she finally went in for her screening, “I sanitized my hands three times, put on my mask, and promised not to touch anything—especially my face or phone," she says. When she arrived at 7:30 A.M. for her appointment, she was relieved to discover the hospital was mostly empty.
“Sensing my anxiety, the ultrasound tech shared the hospital’s cleaning procedures, then wiped down the areas I would touch,” says Ellison. “By the end of the appointment, I had relaxed, but I realized it's going to take more than a vaccine to really trust in the safety of the outside world again.”
把风险角度来看，这是非常重要的琼斯博士说。“得到一个COVID-19感染，会导致显著疾病的风险很小，尤其是当感染率下降，更多的人口发展免疫力”，琼斯博士说。在另一方面，“慢性焦虑会影响人体的免疫系统，可能使个人更容易受到感染。让我们通过这一次与适当的担心但我们知道，我们已经学到了很多经验教训，并会更加强大起来的举动“。