Nova Scotia Podiatry Association Corona Virus information

Health professions/primary care providers are closely monitoring the outbreak of respiratory illness caused by a novel coronavirus (COVID 19). As Primary care providers, Podiatrists will continue to provide services during the current virus outbreak.

In addition to the advice/guidelines provided by both the Federal and Provincial health authorities (see links below), primary care providers, such as Podiatrists are instituting further measures in response to this new virus. These include:

Podiatrists and clinical offices, are asked to carry out passive and active screening.

Signs will be posted in reception areas asking patients with symptoms to identify themselves.

Clinics will operate with minimal incidental contact.
You may be questioned over the phone before scheduling appointments.
Questions might include: Your age, current health status, recent travel (last 14 days) or exposure to recent travelers.

Your Podiatry Appointment

If you are in a high risk category, have symptoms or are otherwise uncomfortable about exposure and have an appointment scheduled with a clinic, please call the office to reschedule your appointment. Clinics are prioritizing the rescheduling of such changed appointments for the earliest available opportunity.

Please do NOT come to a clinic if you are unwell or are at risk of having been exposed to the novel coronavirus. In doing so, you will needlessly be putting others at risk.

If you have a Podiatry emergency, please call your clinic for specific advice /instructions.

How You Can Help Prevent The Spread Of The Virus

Everyone should practice good hygiene and other measures to protect against infections.

Good hygiene includes:

washing your hands often with soap and water
using a tissue and covering your mouth when you cough or sneeze

The coronavirus is most likely spread from person to person through:

direct close contact with a person while they are infectious
contact with droplets when a person with a confirmed infection coughs or sneezes
touching objects or surfaces (like doorknobs or tables) that has droplets from a cough or sneeze by an infected person, and then touching your mouth or face

Please note, the situation is in considerable flux, accordingly measures will change as the need dictates.

The department of Health and Wellness has established an assessment tool which can be accessed at: https://811.novascotia.ca/health_topics/covid-19-when-to-call-811/

Additional information is available here: https://novascotia.ca/coronavirus/#alerts

and here: https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/diseases/coronavirus-disease-covid-19.html