Elective surgeries on again at Lower Keys Medical Center
BY TERRY SCHMIDA
KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER
In another sign of attempts to return to a kind of normal, Lower Keys Medical Center has announced that it’s now allowing elective surgeries under its auspices – effective May 4.
The move will come as a relief for those who may have waited over a month, in some cases, for elective, but necessary, surgeries in the Lower Keys’ hospital.
“On March 20, Lower Keys Medical Center halted elective surgeries per order of Governor Ron DeSantis,” Lower Keys Medical Center Director of Marketing Lynn Corbett-Winn said on May 5. “When the restrictions were lifted, our team started rescheduling patients based upon the order they were originally scheduled. Our elective procedures are medically necessary but not emergency or urgent in nature, and include general surgery, urology, gynecology, eye, ear nose and throat, gastroenterology, and orthopedics.”
The hospital’s Chief of Staff, Dr. John Norris, III, MD, who has logged a lot of hours on the job during the COVID-19 pandemic, is another who is likely to be relieved, given the many private practitioners such as plastic surgeons, who must perform their elective surgeries at the facility.
“As we reopen elective procedures, our physicians and caregivers are working diligently to keep every patient safe,” Norris said in a statement released by the LKMC on May 4. “It is important to reschedule healthcare procedures that have been delayed so health conditions do not deteriorate. We also want to remind everyone that it is safe – and necessary – to seek immediate help in an emergency department for serious health emergencies like chest pain, heart attacks, strokes and other life-threatening conditions.”
Corbett-Winn wouldn’t give details on the number or nature of the scheduled procedures. But she was keen to outline the precautions the LKMC is taking in the face of the pandemic to reassure patients – and their physicians – many of whom may be understandably leery of visiting the hospital, that there’s no need for concern.
“Numerous precautions for infection prevention, access control, social distancing and patient flow are in place to maintain a safe environment of care,” In her  May 4 statement, she said, “Everyone, including staff, is screened prior to entering our facilities, and all employees, physicians and patients are expected to wear masks. Furniture in waiting areas has been spaced to maintain appropriate social distancing. Cleaning and disinfecting of frequently touched surfaces and caregiving spaces has been intensified. Visitor restrictions for inpatients remain in effect, with exceptions for laboring mothers, pediatric patients, and end-of-life situations. No other visitors are permitted.”
In addition, “non-COVID-19 care zones have been defined in the hospital, where patients who are screened as negative for COVID-19 will receive care from dedicated staff,” the release said. “If, at any time, we are caring for COVID-19 positive patients in the hospital, those patients are isolated in a location away from all other patients.”
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