Dear Families of Regina Speech Centre,
We have been working hard to stay connected with all of you through these trying times and are happy to be seeing so many familiar faces online. We thought we would provide you with an update as we move into Phase Two of re-opening as we have been getting questions regarding our plan. Rest assured we are doing our best to see you in person when it is safe to do so.
There are many reasons why we are not yet open, but first and foremost is the requirement to provide you with safe protocols. Health care re-opening is held to strict standards and some of you may have seen or experienced this with your visits or information from a dentist or physiotherapist.
At Regina Speech Centre we want to ensure the safety of our clinicians as well as you our families. Our goal is to slowly transition to in office appointments in June. As a regulated profession speech language pathologists must follow the recommendations of their licensing body and the Government of Saskatchewan. When seeing clients face to face Personal Protective equipment is a key element in preventing the transmission and spread of COVID-19. As a minimum we are required to wear a surgical/procedural mask at all times and in all areas of the facility while involved in direct patient contact or if unable to maintain adequate physical distancing. We may not use homemade masks. We are still doing our best to procure surgical/procedural masks for our staff.
Once we do procure surgical/procedural masks, we will gradually open our doors to the public. We are so eager to see our clients in person, however at this time it is our responsibility to take the guidelines set forth by Saskatchewan Health Authority seriously to protect our families as well as our clinicians.
Once our doors are open we will be implementing further COVID-19 based policies including, but not limited to;
- minimum use of reception and group rooms
- disinfecting toys, materials and surfaces between clients
- Prescreening clients prior to appointments
- providing families with disinfectant to be utilized upon entrance and exit of therapy room
the above list is a brief summary of the steps we are taking to do our part at keeping everyone safe from COVID-19 in our community and centre. A more in depth protocol will be provided to each individual family prior to their first appointment with their clinician.
We hope everyone is keeping safe and staying healthy in this uncertain time. We look forward to seeing everyone soon! Until then, take care, stay safe and see you soon!
Nichole Forbes and Cynthia Bakker