Medical practices and the health care workers within them have been taking COVID-19 by storm. Those working in the medical field have been persevering despite the detriments caused by the global pandemic.
Many local communities have shared their sympathies with health workers and have been cheering them on from the sidelines. Though medical practices have been doing a phenomenal job, workers get worn down from extra hours and late shifts, and their own needs have been neglected.
Fortunately, programs have been put in place to provide help for those who help us. New programs are helping medical practices stay open throughout COVID-19.
Supplying Medical Workers With Basic Needs
With the busyness of hospitals and medical practices, health care workers have had to work more and longer hours. This has taken time away from families and from preparing basic necessities like food and child care. Some companies and organizations have stepped up to provide food or child care to medical workers.
For example, restaurants such as Sweetgreen, Nando’s PERi-PERi, Panda Express and Wawa have offered free meals or significant discounts for those working on the frontlines of the pandemic. Other local restaurants near hospitals have provided similar deals.
In addition to food, health care workers have struggled to find ongoing child care. Luckily, various places around the country have offered child care, or even pet care, for health workers. In Minnesota, university students began a program to babysit or petsit or run errands for COVID health care providers and have already served hundreds of families.
With the security of food and child or pet care attended to, medical practices can stay open. The workers there have assurance that their families are being taken care of while they work, which allows the facility they serve to stay up and running.
Relieving Loans and Other Financial Burdens
Due to COVID, some student loan payments were suspended for six months, since people were laid off from work and may not have had the funds to pay them. Although the relief was initially only through September, that has since been extended to the end of December.
While the student loan relief applies to anyone with student loans, medical practices have received even more financial aid throughout the pandemic. The Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act put in place by the Department of Health and Human Services is distributing $175 billion to health care providers during the pandemic, which has helped the practices stay open.
Additionally, programs have been put in place to continue pay for health care workers and to provide paid sick leave and extended family leave for medical practices. Those working in the medical field have been working overtime and may not have taken time off. However, these kinds of programs allow for much-needed and earned paid leave for health care providers.
Providing Mental Health and Stress Support
Working during the Coronavirus pandemic has left health care providers stressed out and in some cases mentally unwell. The beginnings of the epidemic were most traumatic, but that trauma has continued in many areas, and health care workers still experience the brunt of its effects.
Mental health care is essential for everyone. Since medical practice personnel are seeing and experiencing these effects firsthand, they need opportunities to take care of themselves.
Mental health is just as important as physical health. If a majority of health care workers in one practice can’t operate mentally or are too stressed to come into work, the medical practice can’t operate. Fortunately, medical workers have access to free online counseling, support groups, stress hotlines and more.
Providing mental health support and help to health care workers allows them to continue to help others.
Continuing Education
COVID-19 brought on many new challenges for everyone around the world. People were left not knowing what to do or where to go. This included health care professionals.
Medical practices have worked tirelessly to provide the general public with facts and updates about Coronavirus. They have had to learn new methods of practice. Free online courses have allowed practices to stay open so the employees can educate themselves on how to manage their facilities during COVID.
The American Nurses Association, for example, has established a free training program for all nurses to learn about COVID-19, including how to contain the spread and ongoing updates. Other medical practices offer free retraining or new training to enhance the skills of their workers to deal with ICU patients.
Continued education has been important for health care workers and will continue to be. COVID-19 is new to everyone, and if medical practices are to stay open, they need access to the latest education to best help the public.
Travel Coverage
Some health care workers have had to travel during COVID-19 to provide medical care to patients in other hospitals. Hotels have offered generous discounts and free rooms to those who must travel.
Additionally, Delta Airlines offers free airfare to eligible health care providers traveling to Michigan, Georgia and Louisiana, and is working on providing free flights to other states.
Keeping Medical Practices Open
Medical workers have been there for communities all across the country by caring for COVID-19 patients, providing education to the public and supporting families who have lost someone due to the pandemic. They more than deserve each of these programs and other forms of continued aid to keep their practices open.
Help a medical practice stay open so they can best help you by continuing your support during these difficult times.
