Coronavirus keeping patients away

Coronavirus keeping patients away

Matt...renee... we've been preaching the same thing for weeks now.... stay home as much as you can and continue to social distance.

But some doctors say that's*not the case for those with serious health conditions.

They say they've seen many patients cancel their routine appointments out of fear of contracting the virus.

Oregon medical group has made multiple changes to the way they see their patients -- to keep everyone safe.

But doctors tell me they've seen a significant drop in people coming in for visits.... and instead using telehealth for a lot of their appointments.

They're concerned about a trend..

That has people cancelling or putting off their appointments.

"making sure that their care is up to date...that their issues are being controlled their blood pressure being controlled that sort of thing so its not a matter of avoiding a certain amount of medical care during the pandemic we really need to stay in touch with our patients to position them to stay healthy during the pandemic."

Doctor weiner (winer) says it's okay to put off some procedures like mammograms for a few months.

But she tells me it's important to not forget about them and to reschedule as soon as possible.

She says usually it is a case by case decision and if you have any questions you should contact your doctor.

She says if doctors can't make an assessment over the phone or video chat, you may need to go in, because your health is important, pandemic or not.

Coming up on kezi 9 news at six -- hear about the different types of clinics they've come up with -- to separate patients.

Reporting live in eugene jillian smukler kezi