Update from CHI St. Alexius Carrington

The staff at CHI Health Carrington remain vigilant and ready to serve the community during COVID-19. As such, please note the following:

• For regular healthcare appointments, the medical clinic is open Monday-Fri- day, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and can be accessed through its regular entrance, Door #3. Please call (701) 652-2515 for questions regarding scheduling of an appointment.

For respiratory appointments, the Carrington Respiratory Clinic is open Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and can be accessed through West Door #5 after the patient is called from their vehicle. Please call first before arriving, (701) 652-7217; however, this is only for Monday - Fri- day. Otherwise use the main hospital line, (701) 652-3141.

The Saturday Urgent Care Clinic is closed at this time; however, the emergency room remains open 24/7 and is accessible through its regular entrance, Door #1.

The hospital is open should you need to be hos- pitalized. For safety precautions, no hospital visitors are allowed at this time.

Outpatient medical services remain available.

All patients and staff entering the facility are asked screening questions and have their temperature taken prior to being allowed entry.

All respiratory patients will be screened for possible testing using the CDC guidelines and must have symptoms before testing will occur. Carrington Medical Center collects the specimen and it is sent to the North Dakota Department of Health for testing. It takes approximately 24 hours if the test occurred prior to 3 p.m. as a courier picks up the specimens and takes them to Bismarck. If you are tested after 3-3:30 p.m. it typically takes one additional day. Over the weekend, there may be an additional 24-hour waiting period.

Regardless of a person’s ability to pay, CHI Health Carrington will not deny anyone testing if they meet the CDC guidelines. CHI Health Carrington will not test employees from a business requesting for all staff to be tested. This is not following CDC guidelines.

You might ask “What do I do while I am waiting for COVID-19 test results?” You will be asked to return home and stay in your home until you hear about the results of your test. A good idea would be to track any symptoms you continue to have such as increased cough, increased shortness of breath, increased temperature, etc. Write down who you had contact with during the days leading up to symptoms.

Each business should develop a plan that follows CDC guidelines. Plans should be in place for what the business will do for other employees if there is a suspected COVID-19 employee. E.g .: will you send everyone home until the results come back, or will you have them report to work, and check signs and symptoms and take temperatures. Anyone with signs and symptoms and a temperature should not be allowed to work with others.

As always, the public is reminded that before discussing your personal health information with anyone who may contact you, please verify the caller's identity.

Thank you for your continued understanding during this unique and difficult time. Our facility receives multiple daily updates to continue in our planning and response to COVID-19. All information and processes are subject to change depending on the direction of the Centers for Disease Control, the North Dakota Department of Health, and Federal mandates directed by President Trump and State directives from Governor Burgum.

Please note: All information contained here is current as of the newspaper deadline of 1 p.m. on Tuesday, March 31. With the ever-evolving COVID-19 situation, please refer to our website, http://www.chistalex- iushealth.org, find us on Facebook by searching for CHI St. Alexius Health Carrington, call the Carrington Clinic (701) 652-2515 or Hospital (701) 652-3141 for regular healthcare inquiries or call (701) 652-7217 for COVID-19 pre-screening inquiries.