You can’t always control when you need to see a health care provider and putting off care isn’t a safe option. We want to reassure you that our hospitals and doctor’s offices remain a safe place to get care, whether it’s an emergency or a routine check-up.

Still, it’s natural to feel some anxiety about visiting a health care facility in the face of a pandemic, so we put together a list of 11 ways we’re putting patient safety first to keep you healthy—and feel a bit more at ease.

1. Temperature and symptom screening upon entrance

We screen everyone who enters any of our facilities—including employees—for COVID-19 symptoms. We’ll check your temperature with an infrared thermometer to limit contact and maintain social distancing. We continue to evaluate new technology to keep you safe, like testing a personnel management kiosk pictured above. The small screen takes your picture and a thermal scan to verify your temperature.

2. Training and protective equipment for staff

Every member of our team is ready and equipped to care for you, whether you’re experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or have other health concerns. We train our clinicians to treat all patients while keeping them safe during the current health crisis.

Our employees practice proper hand hygiene, screening and masking, cleaning, and social distancing. We provide masks and other forms of personal protective equipment for our staff. When we keep them healthy, they can do the same for you.

3. Enhanced and more frequent cleaning procedures

We were one of the first hospitals in the country to start using a new cleaning product that disinfects high-touch surfaces in just 1 minute—half the time needed for previous products.

4. Reinforced safety messages

We never want you to forget that with us, you’re safe. We have “Safety First” message reminders posted throughout our facilities with tips to help us keep each other safe, like coughing or sneezing into tissues

5. Pharmacy curbside pickup

Our retail pharmacies offer curbside prescription pick up all the time, but this is an especially important service during COVID-19. Patients can drive to the front of the hospital and call the pharmacy, and someone from our pharmacy will walk the prescription out to their car.

We also offer mail-order prescriptions for patients who would prefer to have their prescriptions shipped directly to their homes. To enroll, call (937) 395-8171.

6. More virtual visits

Kettering Health has fully implemented telehealth services, where a patient can have a virtual appointment with a physician from their homes. Virtual care is ideal for patients who have wellness checks or consultations scheduled that do not require an in-person exam.

MyChart can connect you with your physician through email. You can also schedule a virtual check-in over the phone for a brief, 5-10-minute call with one of our clinicians.

Taking care of as many patients as we can virtually allow us to limit how many people enter our facilities and decrease the risk of exposure for those who do need to be seen in person.

7. COVID-19 units

We have designated areas to care for patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 in an area separate from the rest of our patients. A dedicated team of staff cares for these patients while wearing proper personal protective equipment to reduce the chance of COVID-19 spread.

8. Social distancing

We are making every effort to honor social distancing recommendations and ask that you help us by remaining at least 6 feet away from others while visiting our facilities. We’ve limited seating in our waiting rooms and posted signs as reminders.

While we’ve asked our employees to follow these guidelines, they may need to be closer than 6 feet to provide direct patient care.

9. Visitor restrictions

We’ve limited the number of visitors allowed in our facilities to one per patient, per day, with exceptions for special cases.

We recommend connecting with family during appointments and hospital stays through video when possible, as we know love and support from family is important in the healing process.

10. Mask policy

To help us protect one another, we ask that patients and visitors wear masks in common areas of the hospital, such as hallways, public restrooms, gift shops, and dining areas. We also ask that you wear a mask when a caregiver is present in the patient room.

We encourage you to arrive with your mask that fully covers your nose and mouth. If you don’t bring a mask, wear the mask provided to you.

11. Asymptomatic COVID-19 testing for patients

Kettering Health tests all patients who will be receiving an elective surgery under general anesthesia. This precaution will make sure you are at your healthiest before surgery and can transition into a smooth recovery.

We also know we can’t provide a safe environment if we aren’t healthy. Any employee exhibiting a symptom relative to COVID-19 is asked to self-quarantine and , and once symptoms have subsided, work with employee health before returning to work.