"IT'S SAFE:" Area Doctors Urge Patients to Come to the ER in a Medical Emergency Despite COVID-19

STATEWIDE -- Community Health Network Emergency Department Physician Dr. Chris Ross is urging people to come to the emergency room if they truly need medical help.

"Emergency departments are open as they always have been," Dr. Ross said. "We separated areas for coronavirus patients and non-coronavirus patients."

According to Dr. Ross, the emergency rooms are prepared to care for anything from strokes, heart attacks, shoulder dislocations, simple lacerations, and more, just like they did before the pandemic hit.

Dr. Ross believes that delaying the care of normal patients is almost as dangerous as the coronavirus itself.

"We're seeing quite a few patients who've waited too long to come to the emergency department, and unfortunately have suffered some consequences because of that," said Dr. Ross. "So we definitely encourage those folks to come to the emergency department to be seen early on in their illness so we can help them and treat them more effectively."

Overall, Dr. Ross says the emergency room is still prepared to serve the public, virus or otherwise.