Bradenton VA Clinic closed during coronavirus pandemic. Officials want vets to go online
The Bradenton VA Clinic temporarily closed its doors to in-person visits this week because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Carl Hunsinger, president of Manasota Veterans, learned about the closure when he called about scheduling his annual physical examination.
“Oh, no, we’re closed,” a staff member told Hunsinger.
Bradenton-area veterans, who would normally go the Bradenton VA Clinic, 5520 State Road 64 E., are now being referred to the Sarasota Community Based Outpatient Clinic on Bee Ridge Road or Bay Pines VA Healthcare System in Pinellas County.
“We modified operations at the St. Petersburg, Bradenton, and Port Charlotte Community Based Outpatient Clinics to maximize our virtual care program offerings while keeping with our goals of protecting patients and preserving our health care workforce. We picked these CBOCs to transition face-to-face appointments to virtual care options due to their proximity to our other facilities,” Selina Meiners, public affairs officer for Bay Pines VA Healthcare System, said in an email.
Patients who had face-to-face appointments scheduled were contacted to determine if they wanted to keep their appointments as virtual appointments (phone or video), or reschedule their face-to-face appointments for a later date, Meiners said.
“We are doing everything we can to increase our virtual care program offerings to minimize care backlogs and mitigate any COVID-19 exposure risk. Since March 1, 2020, we have increased virtual care by 17 percent. Some non-urgent care needs will have to be provided in face-to-face settings and it is in the best interest of patients, staff, and the community to postpone non-urgent face-to-face appointments at this time. We are continuing to provide urgent care needs in a face-to-face setting, so there will not be a backlog in regard to urgent needs,” she said.
As of Thursday, 13 Bay Pines patients had tested positive for COVID-19. Four are currently inpatients and nine are in an outpatient setting.
Veterans who are concerned they may have symptoms of COVID-19 (coronavirus), flu or cold should contact the VISN 8 Clinical Contact Center at 1-877-741-3400 (toll free) before coming to a VA facility. Clinical staff are available to provide 24/7 virtual care and support, including nurse advice and triage. This service is available at no cost to Veterans enrolled for care in VISN 8.
“All the hospitals have new protocols to stop the spread of the coronavirus. That’s why the clinic here was closed effective as of Monday,” said Lee Washington, Manatee County veterans service officer.
A transportation plan has been developed for Bradenton-area veterans to help them get to their scheduled appointments.
MCAT still operates the Skyway Connexion on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, as they normally would. For any veteran not residing near the bus line and affected by the closure, MCAT can do a case-by-case Handy bus pickup to get them to a bus stop or the Palmetto station, in order to catch the Bay Pines bus. Any trips that require Tuesday or Thursday travel will be handled on a case-by-case basis, Washington said.
The veteran or their care provider can call the Manatee County Veterans Service Office at 941-749-3030 to request a Handy bus run. A minimum of two days notice is required, Washington said.
This is a “temporary concession to ensure our community’s veterans have options in receiving care,” he said.
On Thursday, the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System’s posted a notice that its Eligibility and Enrollment Department located at the C.W. Bill Young VA Medical Center and at the Lee County Healthcare Center are closed for face-to-face interactions.
“All Community Based Outpatient Clinics will suspend face-to-face eligibility functions as well. This action is being enforced to promote social distancing and to limit the potential risk of exposure to the Coronavirus (COVID-19),” the notice said.
“During this time of limited services, we want to promote the use of alternative methods for enrolling for health care services, updating a financial means test or other enrollment functions.” the notice said.
The Bradenton VA Clinic opened on April 13, 2010, replacing the Ellenton Primary Care VA Clinic and the Bradenton Mental Health Clinic, which were closed.
