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PHS Emergency Response to Peaceful Protests and Riots

Last updated: May 1, 2024

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Categories: Inside PHS

Keeping patient and staff safety at the forefront

PHS is a company that cares for people. People of all shapes, sizes, ethnicities, and while we specialize in pediatrics, even all ages. We are heartbroken by the tragic death of George Floyd and grieve alongside the community in this loss. We are monitoring the continuing peaceful protests and riots that began Wednesday evening (5/27/2020) in Minneapolis, and are assessing their impact on our ability to provide care. We understand the gravity of this time and the significance of these events. Our job right now is to keep the safety of all patients and staff as our primary focus.

In any emergency situation, whether it be a severe storm that knocks out power, or a health pandemic, like COVID-19, PHS engages as a team to develop the appropriate response to maintain the care and safety of our patients and their families. We’re sharing our response in the hopes that we reach as many families as possible

Patient family communications

We are connecting with patient families locally and more broadly through a variety of channels. Please reach out to us with any questions on these or future communications.

  1. Phone calls- we are connecting via phone with all high acuity families who live in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area.
  2. Email- we sent an email to all families who live in Minneapolis or St. Paul with information about our response.
  3. Blog- This blog will be updated as necessary with information related to changes/continued disruptions.
  4. Social media- we will be utilizing Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to keep our patient families updated with information about our response and resources to help as available.

All patients who have a visit or delivery scheduled from Thursday, May 28th (today) through Monday, June 1st, may also receive a phone call to discuss any potential changes or disruptions. Like all emergencies, the timeline for this disruption is unpredictable, for the time being, we are planning out 5 days and we will revise our plan as needed.

Preparing for Emergencies

Our goal with all communications is to check on patient safety and security. Below is a list of questions, considerations, and resources we’re asking of our patient families.
  1. Do you feel as though you are in a safe environment for yourself and your child(ren)?
    • If not, do you have a secondary location, maybe the home of a family or friend, you can relocate to temporarily?
    • If relocating is possible, do you have a complete list and enough stock of the equipment, supplies, and medications you’d need to bring along? PHS is here to make sure you stay safe. Please call us with any questions.
  2. Do you have an emergency plan in place? If so, is it up to date? If not, please do your best to build one immediately.
  3. Please anticipate that emergency response services and your route to local hospitals may be unavailable. There are mapping apps such as Waze, that can help you navigate any current road closures or real-time traffic delays.

Resources for the Community

As a way to support our community we have pulled together a list of resources and will do our best to keep them up to date as we learn more about pop up food shelves and ongoing access to daily needs in Minneapolis and St. Paul.

 

We know this is an ever-evolving situation. We are here to support our patients, their families, and our staff through this time. Please contact your clinician or customer service with any questions.
Originally published: May 28, 2020