My doctor asked me to come for an in-person appointment. Why can’t we do this over phone or video instead?
For the first 18 months of the pandemic, we adopted a #VirtualFirst approach where the majority of medical care was provided through phone and video appointments. In-person visits were only arranged if deemed medically necessary following a virtual assessment. This approach was also applied to medical concerns where an in-person appointment would have been traditionally required.
This was done to reduce the risk of a potentially avoidable exposure to COVID-19 for both patients and healthcare workers. These decisions were made on a case-by-case basis when the benefits of an in-person assessment did not justify the added risk of spending unnecessary time in a public space.
However, It is now safe for patients to come for in-person appointments at Magenta Health for the following reasons:
High COVID-19 vaccination rates locally
The adoption of extensive infection control measures
We have many safety protocols including, but not limited to, universal masking, multiple points of COVID-19 symptoms screening and a restriction on the total number of in-person appointments at any one time to allow for physical distancing.
Doctors make decisions about the need for an in-person assessment based on years of medical training and experience, on the individual's unique circumstances and specific health concern, and on the individual's overall medical history. Requests to have a virtual appointment instead may be accommodated on a case-by-case basis only for patients who are at high risk of complications of COVID-19. You can read more about “In-Person & Virtual Visits” here.