ACP issues guidance on easing social distancing, recognizes role of internists during the pandemic
The College addressed what communities need to safely resume economic activities and in-person medical visits, and released a new video emphasizing the essential role of the internal medicine community.
On May 7, ACP issued recommendations for how medical and economic activities in the United States could be resumed in a phased and prioritized way, based on the best available evidence, in a manner that mitigates risk. The College recommended that in order to resume activities, communities need to have sufficient testing capacity, particularly for vulnerable populations, underserved communities, and those at greatest risk from COVID-19. Communities also need to have appropriate health care system capacity, including ventilators, personal protective equipment, trained personnel, and capability for effective contact tracing with privacy protections. When cases are declining sufficiently, communities need to work with public health authorities to develop risk-based plans for a phased resumption of activities, the College said. ACP also called on the federal government to do more to support state and local government and public health authorities with sufficient funding and resources.
The recommendations also address resumption of in-person medical visits and other health care services, noting that this should be based on communities' capacity for COVID-19 mitigation as described above. Ambulatory internal medicine practices should start planning how they might safely and effectively begin to resume in-person visits, including consideration of innovative workflows and schedules designed to minimize contact between patients and staff, the College said. The College recommended that public and private payers provide direct financial support to practices to offset losses of revenue and increased costs through at least the 2020 calendar year, even as in-person visits are resumed.
ACP is celebrating the essential role of the internal medicine community during the global pandemic and every day, thanking internists for leading, for putting patients first, and for exemplifying the best in medicine. Members are invited to watch a video of ACP members in action, share experiences, acknowledge colleagues, and use the hashtags #IMEssential and #IMProud.