Dear Patient,

Few topics in my years of practice have raised as many questions as the COVID-19 pandemic. We learn more about the virus every day, including how to treat infected patients and how to limit its spread.

Your efforts have helped flatten the curve and we’ve seeing the gradual reopening of our state. With people spending more time out of their homes, please wear your mask whenever you are in contact with others, continue to practice social distancing, and wash your hands frequently. These precautions remain our best defense against this highly-contagious and potentially-dangerous virus.

We’re seeing an increase in patient visits at our offices, as people are seeking care that had been put on hold due to the pandemic. The physicians in all of our departments — including primary care, specialty care, and urgent care — are making appointments available to care for you safely. As more people walk through our doors, InterMed has introduced additional safety measures to protect our patients and staff:

Combining visits
If you have an office visit that requires blood work, vaccines, x-rays, or other care, we will do our best to schedule them all on the same day as that appointment, so you’ll make a single trip to our offices.

By appointment only
We do not allow walk-in visits at any of our practice sites, including our Lab locations. Please call your physician’s office for an in-office or telehealth appointment to ensure you receive care in the most appropriate way and location.

Arrive 15 minutes prior to your appointment
We ask that you arrive for an in-office appointment 15 minutes early to ensure proper social distancing and allow time for COVID-19 screening. We are taking the temperature of all patients, visitors, and employees upon entry, and have limited the number of people on an elevator to six. Arriving 15 minutes early allows time to accommodate these safety measures.

• However, we ask that you do not arrive more than 15 minutes prior to your appointment, to limit the number of people in our offices at any given time. This includes appointments with your provider, as well as our Lab and Imaging departments.

Finally, please remember that everyone entering our offices should cover both their nose and mouth with a mask, and whenever possible, we ask that patients come to appointments alone.

Researchers expect to have a COVID-19 vaccine by early 2021. I’m hopeful that until then, our continued efforts will help keep the curve flat and minimize the impact on our friends, neighbors, and community.

Stay safe and well,

Dan Loiselle, MD
Chief Medical Officer