Minimizing COVID-19 exposure: Social distancing in practice

As increasing numbers of states and municipalities issue shelter-in-place requirements to fight COVID-19's spread, our veterinary teams are challenged to maintain high-quality patient care while protecting team members and clients alike.

AVMA has created a veterinary case management flowchart to help. Housed on our COVID-19 resource page, the downloadable chart provides practical guidance to manage clinical cases while minimizing COVID-19 exposure through social distancing. It can help you decide when to use telemedicine and offers suggestions to minimize person-to-person contact through measures like curbside check-in and telephone invoicing.

The flowchart is just one of many resources available to veterinary teams on our dedicated COVID-19 resource page. Others include:

• Guidelines for using personal protective equipment (PPE) when demand exceeds supply because of COVID-19
• Considerations for mobile and house call veterinarians
• Advice to help maintain emotional wellbeing during this emergency
• FAQs for veterinary professionals and pet owners
• Sharable social media FAQs so you can provide fact-based information for your clients
• Information on COVID-19 measures enacted in Washington and how they impact veterinarians and veterinary teams

You’ll also find a wide range of information about COVID-19, its origin and spread, and links to important resources from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE).

More to come

We’re developing new resources and updating the existing ones with new information around the clock. Subscribe to this blog to receive daily emails of new announcements, and follow our social media pages to see the information we’re sharing there.