Recently, SIR presented a webinar with a panel from Singapore clarifying what advanced preparation in IR for a pandemic looks like. As many practices in the United States have limited time to implement changes, we have suggested a 10-point plan to aid in the preparation of caring for COVID-19 patients.
Read moreSIR is asking all IRs to cancel all IR procedures except for those that are urgent or emergent. However, determination of such acuity is based on many factors. While each institution should decide what can be postponed on a case-by-case basis, we offer a sample classification table.
Read moreSIR staff and volunteers have been collecting your questions and curating the conversations taking place on the SIR Connect Open Forum for easier reference here within this digest of FAQs. This list will be updated as more information becomes available.
Read moreIs your IR service ready for COVID-19?
As SIR members adjust their practices to manage the reality of COVID-19 in their communities, IRs from abroad and current health care policies can offer important insights about how best to prepare. View the recording for this special webinar during which faculty from Singapore shared their experience in preparing IR service for COVID-19 and learn more about the new SIR COVID-19 Toolkit for Interventional Radiologists.
In an effort to keep our health care workers and patients safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Medical Association (AMA) has designed this quick guide to support physicians and practices in expediting the implementation of telemedicine, so care can continue to be provided to those who need it most.
For help with telemedicine coding and billing, please click below.
Read moreUnder President Trump’s leadership to respond to the need to limit the spread of community COVID-19, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has broadened access to Medicare telehealth services so that beneficiaries can receive a wider range of services from their doctors without having to travel to a healthcare facility.
For more general telemedicine updates from CMS, please click below.
Read moreThe Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is posting Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) to aid Medicare Provider Enrollment Relief in their response to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
To review frequently asked provider questions with supporting answers, please click below.
Read moreWorld Health Organization (WHO)
COVID-19 Situation Dashboard (updates on number of cases and locations)
Rational use of PPE for COVID-19
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Print/Poster Resources for COVID-19
Implementation of Mitigation Strategies for Communities with Local COVID-19 Transmission
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Additional reccomendations
JHU COVID-19 Map
SIR COVID-19 Webinar (March 19, 2020)
Radiology: Department Preparedness
References
1. Lauer, S. A. et al. The Incubation Period of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) From Publicly Reported Confirmed Cases: Estimation and Application. Ann. Intern. Med. (2020) doi:10.7326/M20-0504.
2. World Health Organization. Report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). (2020).
3. Ng, Y. et al. Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Surveillance and Containment Measures for the First 100 Patients with COVID-19 in Singapore — January 2–February 29, 2020. MMWR Morb. Mortal. Wkly. Rep. 69, (2020).
4. The Novel Coronavirus Pneumonia Emergency Response Epidemiology Team. The Epidemiological Characteristics of an Outbreak of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Diseases (COVID-19) — China, 2020[J]. China CDC Weekly 2, 113–122.
5. Adams, J. G. & Walls, R. M. Supporting the Health Care Workforce During the COVID-19 Global Epidemic. JAMA (2020) doi:10.1001/jama.2020.3972.
6. Cheng, V. C. C. et al. Escalating infection control response to the rapidly evolving epidemiology of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) due to SARS-CoV-2 in Hong Kong. Infect. Control Hosp. Epidemiol. 1–24 (2020) doi:10.1017/ice.2020.58.
7. Schwartz, J., King, C.-C. & Yen, M.-Y. Protecting Health Care Workers during the COVID-19 Coronavirus Outbreak –Lessons from Taiwan’s SARS response. Clin. Infect. Dis. ciaa255 (2020) doi:10.1093/cid/ciaa255.
8. Ueda, M. et al. Managing Cancer Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Agility and Collaboration Toward a Common Goal. J. Natl. Compr. Canc. Netw. 10 (2020).
Acknowledgments:
Laura Findeiss, MD, President SIR
Torrance Andrews, MD, FSIR
Aaron Brandis, MD
Andrew Caplin, MD
Janice Newsome, MD FSIR
Rajesh Shah, MD
Tavri Sidhartha, MD