Message from Fauquier Health: Rescheduling non-urgent surgical cases and outpatient services

Fauquier Health continues to adapt to meet the clinical needs of our communities during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and through this, we remain committed to providing high-quality care and protecting the health and safety of our patients, employees, physicians and community at large. We have been working closely with the Virginia Health Department and Virginia Hospital and Healthcare Association and following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). An important element to our preparedness is minimizing the risk of
exposure in any way we can, as we navigate this rapidly evolving situation and prepare for what the next few weeks may hold.

Given this, Fauquier Health has made the difficult, but necessary, decision to reschedule elective and non-urgent surgical cases and reschedule all non-urgent outpatient services, when deemed clinically appropriate, for the next 4 weeks or after April 23. Patients whose appointments are being rescheduled will be notified, and procedures will be rescheduled as soon as feasible. We are
confident that this important operational decision will help minimize the spread of illness by limiting unnecessary contact between patients and providers.

The trust our community places in us is so important. We want to assure our community that it is safe to come to our hospital should you or a family member need care. Our providers and clinical
teams are well-trained and prepared to safely respond to viruses and infectious diseases, including COVID-19.

We appreciate your understanding and support as we continue to do everything we can to prepare for the potential impact of COVID-19 on our community. For more information about hospital
preparedness, please visit our website at FauquierHealth.org. For more information about COVID-19, please contact the Virginia State Health Department who has established a dedicated phone line, 1-877-ASK-VDH3, or visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at www.cdc.gov.

As a reminder, if you are concerned you are experiencing respiratory illness symptoms (fever, cough, shortness of breath) and plan to visit our hospital, your primary care provider or an urgent clinic, please call ahead before you go and let them know that you are experiencing symptoms that may possibly be related to COVID-19. This will allow providers to properly prepare for your visit and take the necessary precautions to keep others from being infected or exposed. If you are having a medical emergency, you should call 911 or go directly to the Emergency Room. If possible, notify the dispatch agent that your emergency involves symptoms possibly related to COVID-19.