A Message from Dr. Miller

Stresses to our office and other medical facilities

As has been stated in a previous newsletter, we are experiencing a high volume.  I write this letter after being on a Zoom call with 550 pediatric practices around the country.  We are all experiencing the highest number of calls and needs than have been documented in any of our collective pasts.  This week FSP has taken over 1,000 phone calls through the first 4 days of the week.  We have been over run with the volume as we dry to drink from a fire hose.  Our doctors, nurses and especially our office staff have calmly and faithfully done all that we have asked of them.  At one point this week, we had all staff on phones and 60 patients in the call queue.  We ask for and need your patience as we struggle to manage all the needs.  We are doing the best we can.  Our staff certainly senses the frustration that many of you have and we will work on your behalf.  If you have a non-urgent need, please consider a few options to help us manage an unprecedented need:

• Send a web portal message – we will get to it as quickly as possible.  This can be a time saver as staff do not need to collect all the information needed.  This is really helpful for form requests, prescription requests and other non-urgent requests.

• If you are awaiting for a call about COVID lab results, please know we will get to you.  The high volume of testing can lead to longer time for results to return.  Again – we will get back to you about the results.  Signing up with Labcorp.com for send out results and registering an account – click here – will allow you to get results if we are closed, or also get them if we are so busy taking care of urgent issues.

• If you need a note to return to school, we need to verify: 1) your child is improved 2) there is no fever for 24 hours 3) there is no vomiting or diarrhea for the last 12 hours.  Send a message through your portal account with this information and it will help the nurse get your note ready.  Please do not ask for a clearance note on the first day of an illness.  We really want children to be back in school as much as your do, but this is when your child is most contagious.  Even if they have a negative rapid COVID PCR test, they are still contagious for the illness they have.  Sending them to school will risk spreading a virus that will lead to other children who need to be pulled out of school, seen and tested.

• Well Visits – we have had many parents frustrated when turned away for a well visit when someone is sick.  Please call us before the appointment to reschedule, or turn the appointment into a sick appointment.  We understand that you have waited to get this appointment.  Please remember that we care for high risk patients including newborns, those with immune deficiency, those who have cancer and other high risk medical conditions.  We also have high risk staff members.  To keep everyone safe, we are unable to see you inside the building.  

Thank you so much for your understanding.  We know this is exhausting.  We are hopeful as we get to look at the upcoming studies on vaccinating young children.  If these studies are confirmed to be as positive as we are hearing, this will have the most significant effect on slowing down the COVID virus.  This virus is here to stay.  We just need to knock it down to an acceptable level.  It will need to be a team effort to do so, but we have confidence that we will work through that process successfully.