CenCal Health NEWS HUB:
Welcome Back to Care: Local Providers Join CenCal Health in Advancing Public Health Message
Decrease in Immunizations, Cancer Screenings, Annual Physicals Seen on Central Coast Due to COVID Concerns This fall, top health professionals on the Central Coast joined CenCal Health, the local Medi-Cal health plan, in encouraging the public to return to their doctors, clinics and hospitals for vital health care services, especially immunizations, cancer screenings and other preventive care evaluations. A bilingual public awareness campaign began in September to persuade Central Coast residents to go back to regular medical care – care that has slowed up to 50% in some service categories since the national health emergency was declared in March. Disruptions occurred in routine preventive and other non-emergency care due to stay-at-home orders to reduce the spread of COVID-19, and public fear of coronavirus contagion.
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CENTRAL COAST PHYSICIANS
“Now that we know more about preventing the spread, it’s time to welcome you back to care,” says Van Do-Reynoso, Ph.D., Director of Santa Barbara County Public Health Department in a new TV commercial produced by CenCal Health, airing in English and Spanish on local stations across Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. Other prominent participants in the public health message include Charles Fenzi, MD, CEO of Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics, Rocio Rodriguez Valencia, MD, of Community Health Centers of the Central Coast (CHC), and Sue Andersen, president and CEO of Marian Regional Medical Center. In the “Welcome Back to Care” TV spots, local medical professionals emphasize the safety of patients returning to care, outlining examples of protocols put in place in addition to mask wearing, temperature readings and disinfecting facilities. Central Coast medical staff are implementing measures like “turning cars into waiting rooms,” says Santa Maria pediatrician Robert Barry, MD, “and reducing the number of patients in our office at the same time,” offers Melvin Lopez, MD, of Marian Community Clinics. Paul Hennig, MD, Chief Medical Officer & Family Physician for American Indian Health & Services, states that they are “offering telemedicine, so some visits can be held through your smartphone.”
Fall 2020
