They are the heroes of their era – the medical professionals serving during Covid19, and while struggling to meet the demands of the times they are still treating patients not hosting the virus, and are still performing the appendectomies and heart surgeries that people’s lives depend upon.
Most elective surgeries are being postponed on order of Governor Abbott, but operating rooms and the doctors who manage them are still treated non-Coronavirus patients. Dr. Brad Lembcke, Medical Director at Houston St. Luke’s Health, says if you have a medical issue that has just emerged or is urgent, get treatment.
“If someone has an urgent or emergent procedure, we’re still able to do those. But those can that wait we’re having postponed until we get over the crisis that we’re under right now,” he tells KTRH News. Lembcke says surgeons, interventional cardiologists, gastroenterologists and other specialists are proactively reaching out to patients to discuss rescheduling. “If you’re scheduled for a knee replacement,
often times that’s something that can be delayed. If you have a diagnosis of a cancer sometimes those need to happen sooner than later. You wouldn’t necessarily want to put that one off.”
He suggests contacting your physician’s office if you have questions regarding a scheduled procedure.