Press Release courtesy of Phoebe Putney Health System
Albany, Ga. –Phoebe is taking additional steps to try to prevent the spread of COVID-19. As of Friday afternoon, all Phoebe employees and all physicians are required to submit to temperature screenings when they arrive at work. “We want to do all we can to protect our patients, contain this illness and minimize its spread throughout our communities. To ensure no Phoebe team members who may have coronavirus symptoms are at work, we are checking them daily before their shifts,” said Scott Steiner, Chief Executive Officer, Phoebe Putney Health System.
At all Phoebe hospitals, team members are being funneled through limited entrances where their temperatures are quickly taken. Per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines, anyone with a fever will immediately be referred for appropriate medical screening. At other Phoebe facilities, all employees will submit to temperature screenings when they arrive in their departments before they have any contact with patients and visitors.
Phoebe also made the decision to close its employee gyms, Phoebe Healthworks in Albany and Americus. “While employee wellness remains a priority, it isn’t wise for our employees to be in close contact in shared workout facilities. We will encourage them to find safer ways to exercise for now,” Steiner said.
Older individuals, those with chronic conditions and those with compromised immune systems are at greater risk of serious complications from COVID-19. Phoebe urges all southwest Georgians to make sure their loved ones who fall into high-risk categories are following proper precautions and have the food, medicine and supplies they need without having to make regular trips into the public to get them.
###
-Follow the Southwest Georgia Network at southwestgeorgianetwork.com.
-On Twitter @swganetwork.
