Pediatrics Letter

Attention Pediatricians and Family Medicine Clinicians:

As you are likely aware, there is increased circulation of several respiratory viruses in recent weeks, including RSV, the Flu and COVID 19, especially among our pediatric population. The Department of Health is monitoring regional hospital capacity and is engaging hospital and health care systems that may be seeing larger than normal patient volumes in their emergency departments and inpatient units.

Care is best delivered to children from their medical home and it is in everyone’s best interest for sick children to be evaluated in their medical home prior to sending a child to an emergency department. Hospital emergency departments and inpatient capacity are best maintained for those children in need of this level of care. Parents are being reminded to contact their pediatricians if their child is sick and exhibiting symptoms of a respiratory virus. We are reminding pediatricians to do their part at preserving hospital capacity for those children in need of hospital level of care.