MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The COVID-19 pandemic has altered how hospitals and clinics operate as the numbers of positive cases and deaths continue to climb in the Mid-South.
In medicine, Telemedicine is becoming an increasingly popular alternative to a doctor's visit. It's what they've been doing more of at the orthopedics offices of OrthoSouth.
Dr. Tom Giel said they've seen new cases of people getting injured from being stuck at home like getting injured playing with their kids or trying to get out to exercise.
"We have seen a little bit of a change with people home with their children. Sometimes they're trying to demonstrate things they want their children to do outside to play and that can lead to some injuries," Dr. Giel said.
OrthoSouth said its goal is to keep people out of the emergency room who don't need to be there during the COVID-19 pandemic. To do that, they're offering their services to the public 24/7.
"If the ER is overflowing and the ER is having to deal with COVID-19 patients, they have the ability to offload that work flow towards us," he said.
So if an overnight injury occurs, a physician at OrthoSouth is on standby to take the call and discuss whether the injury warrants a visit to the emergency room.
"We're trying to make sure that we're unburdening the ER as much as possible so the patients that normally might want to go to the ER, we're giving them an avenue so that hopefully they can avoid that," Dr. Giel said.
Medical experts say under no circumstances should people avoid going to the emergency room if they feel their symptoms are truly serious.
To learn more about OrthoSouth services, click here.