Covid policy

Covid policy.

Where possible, treatments will be carried out via phone or facetime using advice and exercises.
Patients who fall into vulnerable groups* extra effort will be put into trying to avoid a face to face consultation. If this is not possible and the need for treatment is deemed to outweigh the potential risks (a decision made between you and I), then I can arrange for you to be my first appointment of the day. So as to further reduce risks.
* clinically vulnerable groups include: solid organ transplant recipients; people with cancer undergoing treatment; people with lung cancer; people with blood or bone marrow cancers (such as leukaemia, lymphoma, myeloma) at any stage of treatment; people with severe respiratory conditions (such as cystic fibrosis, severe asthma, copd); people with rare diseases that significantly increase risk of infection; people on immunosuppression therapy; women who are pregnant and have a heart condition; people who have been advised to isolate by their gp.
Where an individual or member of their household has been told to shield it will not be possible to offer face to face consultation at this time.
Where face to face consultation is deemed necessary, the subjective assessment (questions), will be carried out the day before via phone. At this time I will confirm that anyone coming to the practice or anyone in their household is free of covid symptoms, ( new continuous cough, increased temperature (37.8°c or above), altered/ loss of taste or smell). I will also confirm that the same is true of me.
I will request an email address or mobile number if I don’t already possess it so that I can forward a consent form for the patient to fill in and return electronically prior to appointment.
Patients will be asked to pay in advance by bank transfer when possible to reduce the need to touch a card machine. Where this is not possible, the card reader will be cleaned before and after each use.
I will wear appropriate ppe ( mask, disposable apron, and gloves). ppe will be double bagged and the bags disposed of more than 72 hours later ( having been removed and stored in an outdoor storage box at my home).

Practice rules.

Anyone attending the practice is requested to wear a face covering or mask on attendance.

I will attempt to minimise the areas of the practice that patients come into contact with to reduce risks of covid transmission.
Patients are requested to attend “on time”, rather than early where possible to avoid time in the waiting room and reduce the risk of patient overlap. If driving to the appointment, it is suggested that patients wait in their car and I will phone them to let them know when it is clear for them to enter the premises. ( please ensure that you have the mobile with the number provided with you and that it is turned on)
Patients are asked where possible to attend alone. If assistance is required to and from the car park, I can call both when I’m ready for the patient to enter and when the treatment has finished to allow the helper to come up to the practice. If you do want to be accompanied, I will seat the guest just outside the door of the treatment room so that they can still be part of the session whilst maintaining social distancing.
Patients are requested to go to the toilet prior to attendance. The toilet will not be available
I will be wearing appropriate ppe ( mask, disposable apron, and gloves), to help keep patients safe. Whilst this may be a bit unnerving, it shouldn’t affect my ability to treat and I should still be recognisable under it all. ppe will be double bagged and the bags disposed of more than 72 hours later ( having been stored in an outdoor storage box at my home) in line with current regulations.
I will check my temperature at the beginning of each day and cancel appointments if my temperature is too high(37.8°c or above). Upon entry into the premises I will check your temperature with a non contact IR thermometer. If your temperature is 37.8°c or above I will be unable to treat you and will have to reschedule in a weeks time.
Hand sanitiser will be made available and patients are required to use it upon entry into the practice.
Some treatment techniques may be impacted during this time but the majority of treatment options should still be available. This is likely to involve being in close proximity
During treatment I will where possible, leave the treatment door open to improve air circulation.
During face to face consultations it will not be possible to remain 2m distanced for the whole session. However, in line with government guidelines, I will avoid being closer than 2m for more than 15 minutes in a session. this does not mean that sessions will only be 15 minutes long and I will aim to do questioning via telephone the day before to reduce the face to face time to a minimum
Between patients, all work surfaces or surfaces touched by either myself or anyone in the premises will be cleaned along with pens, tools, or any devices used.

Covid specific consent form for face to face consultation.

Name:

Address:

I confirm that I have not had any of the following symptoms in the last 14 days: Fever, shortness of breath, loss of sense of taste or smell, persistent dry cough, runny nose or sore throat.

☐yes
☐no

I confirm that I am not in the clinically extremely vulnerable category and therefore advised to shield at home by the government or my gp

☐yes
☐no

I am in a clinically vulnerable category but I have not been told to shield at this time and I am prepared to come in for treatment. I have been made aware of the risks and the measures taken to minimise them.

☐Yes
☐No
☐N/A

I confirm that to the best of my knowledge, i have not been in contact with anyone with confirmed covid 19 in the last 14 days.

☐yes
☐no

I understand that coronavirus may not cause symptoms in some people and is causing a pandemic which means healthcare services are required to operate differently

☐yes
☐no

I confirm that i have been made aware of physiotherapy guidelines that require a telephone/ video triage appointment to be conducted before I can attend in person.

☐yes
☐no

I can confirm that I have not travelled overseas in the last 14 days and I am not required to self isolate.

☐Yes
☐No

About my visit:

I confirm that I am aware of the clinics requirements for social distancing within the clinic.

☐yes
☐no

I can confirm that I am aware of the clinic’s requirement for hand decontamination within the clinic.

☐yes
☐no

I can confirm that the clinic requires me to wear a face covering within the clinic.

☐yes
☐no

I can confirm that i have been told about the cleaning of the clinic space before/ after my attendance.

☐yes
☐no

I can confirm that i am aware of the clinics preference for contactless payment.

☐yes
☐no

I understand that my physiotherapist is required to wear ppe as set by public health authorities during my appointment and this is not optional for them.

☐yes
☐no

I understand that on the day of the treatment, my clinician will take his temperature using a contactless infra red thermometer at the beginning of the day and if his temperature is 37.8°c or above the appointment will need to be rescheduled

☐yes
☐no

I understand that my clinician will take my temperature using a contactless infra red thermometer and if my temperature is 37.8°c or above that i will not be able to enter the premises and the appointment will need to be rescheduled

☐yes
☐no

My clinician has confirmed that they have not had any of the following symptoms in the last 14 days: fever, shortness of breath, loss of sense of taste or smell, dry cough runny nose or sore throat.

☐yes
☐no

They have confirmed that to the best of their knowledge, they have not been in contact with anyone with confirmed covid 19 in the last 14 days.

☐yes
☐no

They have discussed with me the reasons why my clinical need for healthcare cannot be met by a telephone/ video consultation.

☐yes
☐no

I agree to attend a face to face appointment during the covid 19 pandemic

☐yes
☐no

signed Patient/ parent or guardian/ person legally entitled to sign on behalf of a person who lacks capacity. (delete as appropriate )

………………………………………………………………………………

signed Therapist…………………………………………………………

date…………………….