Racial Injustice Statement June 22, 2020
Peer Projects and Therapy From the Heart pride ourselves in being a safe place for all children and families to come and be part of a community. We meet families where they are, and unconditionally accept them for who they are. During these historic times of social injustice and unrest, we stand with the Black community and people of color. Black Lives Matter. We are committed to fighting racial injustice in ways that we can, and by continuing our education as a team to fight systemic racism.
Peer Projects and Therapy From the Heart pride ourselves in being a safe place for all children and families to come and be part of a community. We meet families where they are, and unconditionally accept them for who they are. During these historic times of social injustice and unrest, we stand with the Black community and people of color. Black Lives Matter. We are committed to fighting racial injustice in ways that we can, and by continuing our education as a team to fight systemic racism.
Reopening Statement June 18, 2020
Dear Families,
It has been quite a few months since we transitioned to this new world and a new way of providing therapy to all of you. We have been thrilled to be able to continue providing services to your family over telehealth while we have been ordered by the Governor to close our clinic. We know some of you are wondering about in person visits and when we may provide these again, now that some restrictions have been eased.
We are carefully reviewing the comprehensive guidelines and safety standards for providing in-person health services established by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) now that we are in Phase 2, as well as evolving information from the scientific community who continue to study COVID-19 and the many changes that are coming to light with this pandemic.
It is our top priority to keep our dedicated team, and the families we serve, safe.
We are not looking to change what is working while COVID-19 continues to be a risk, and it is important to us that we are able to maintain any reopening progress that we make. To that end, we wanted to share the following DPH guidelines for healthcare settings, as stated on their website:
Therefore, when considering the possibility of scheduling in-person visits, our plan is to continue with telehealth for most of our families for now. However, families for whom telehealth has not been a good fit, and who need in person visits due to one of the reasons above, we would like to consider a plan with you. This will include, on our part, setting up the clinic to meet the Massachusetts Mandatory Safety Standards. These consist of things you have likely heard a lot of already: social distancing, hygiene protocols, staffing and operations logistics, and cleaning and disinfecting. These are all big tasks to tackle and ones we do not intend to rush through, especially given the vulnerability of many of our clients. We will communicate these new procedures with you as we put them in place. Please reach out to your therapist, if you haven’t already to discuss your family’s needs.
If your child and family have enjoyed telehealth and you would like to continue in this manner, please be assured that we will continue to provide this service. We are enjoying telehealth with your child and on a positive note, insurances are continuing to cover telehealth services for speech therapy and occupational therapy. It seems the insurance world understands the importance of continuity of care via telehealth in these uncertain times, which simultaneously helps our children grow while keeping everyone healthy and safe.
As always, please feel free to be in touch with any questions or concerns. We value you and your child as part of our larger Peer Projects Therapy From the Heart family, and look forward to continuing our relationship with you.
Sincerely,
Peer Projects Therapy From the Heart
Dear Families,
It has been quite a few months since we transitioned to this new world and a new way of providing therapy to all of you. We have been thrilled to be able to continue providing services to your family over telehealth while we have been ordered by the Governor to close our clinic. We know some of you are wondering about in person visits and when we may provide these again, now that some restrictions have been eased.
We are carefully reviewing the comprehensive guidelines and safety standards for providing in-person health services established by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) now that we are in Phase 2, as well as evolving information from the scientific community who continue to study COVID-19 and the many changes that are coming to light with this pandemic.
It is our top priority to keep our dedicated team, and the families we serve, safe.
We are not looking to change what is working while COVID-19 continues to be a risk, and it is important to us that we are able to maintain any reopening progress that we make. To that end, we wanted to share the following DPH guidelines for healthcare settings, as stated on their website:
- health care providers should continue to provide the use of telehealth services where clinically appropriate and feasible for a given patient.
- for in person services, health care providers should prioritize high-priority preventative services, pediatric care and immunizations, and urgent procedures that would lead to high risk or significant worsening of the patient’s condition if deferred, as described by Phase I Guidance.
- health care providers should then identify and prioritize the patients and services that, based on the clinical determination of the providers, are most critical and time sensitive (e.g., those with chronic illness, acute illness, behavioral health conditions, symptoms that negatively affect their quality of life or ability to perform daily activities).
Therefore, when considering the possibility of scheduling in-person visits, our plan is to continue with telehealth for most of our families for now. However, families for whom telehealth has not been a good fit, and who need in person visits due to one of the reasons above, we would like to consider a plan with you. This will include, on our part, setting up the clinic to meet the Massachusetts Mandatory Safety Standards. These consist of things you have likely heard a lot of already: social distancing, hygiene protocols, staffing and operations logistics, and cleaning and disinfecting. These are all big tasks to tackle and ones we do not intend to rush through, especially given the vulnerability of many of our clients. We will communicate these new procedures with you as we put them in place. Please reach out to your therapist, if you haven’t already to discuss your family’s needs.
If your child and family have enjoyed telehealth and you would like to continue in this manner, please be assured that we will continue to provide this service. We are enjoying telehealth with your child and on a positive note, insurances are continuing to cover telehealth services for speech therapy and occupational therapy. It seems the insurance world understands the importance of continuity of care via telehealth in these uncertain times, which simultaneously helps our children grow while keeping everyone healthy and safe.
As always, please feel free to be in touch with any questions or concerns. We value you and your child as part of our larger Peer Projects Therapy From the Heart family, and look forward to continuing our relationship with you.
Sincerely,
Peer Projects Therapy From the Heart