Seattle Children’s has added the following information to our Provider FAQs – COVID-19.
If families have questions about the coronavirus, please have them call Seattle Children’s only if their question relates specifically to an upcoming appointment with us.
- We continue to receive many calls from the general public about COVID-19. To avoid burdening hospital phone lines and diverting staff from COVID-19 preparations, we are asking our PCP partners in the community to help us direct these inquiries to the appropriate public health authorities and other trustworthy information sources, including:
- Seattle Children’s website with information on the coronavirus
- CDC guidance on how to limit prevent exposure
- Public Health – Seattle & King County website
- Seattle Times: facts about the coronavirus and how to prevent COVID-19
Thank you for your partnership.
Q: Who is being tested for COVID-19?
A: Current capacity for testing is limited. Seattle Children’s is testing the following for COVID-19:
- Admitted patients with any respiratory symptoms or fever of unclear etiology
- ED/Urgent care patients with acute respiratory symptoms or fever of unclear etiology with high risk travel or a known COVID-19 exposure
- Seattle Children’s ambulatory patients with acute respiratory symptoms or fever of unclear etiology and high risk travel or a known COVID-19 exposure.
The following may be tested for COVID-19:
- ED/urgent care patients: with acute respiratory symptoms or fever of unclear etiology
- Seattle Children’s ambulatory patients not meeting the above, but who fall into the following categories:
- New respiratory symptoms (cough or shortness of breath, with or without fever) AND being in ANY ONE of the following groups:
- Other underlying medical conditions that place a patient at high risk for complications from a viral respiratory illness, such as immune compromised state, chronic cardiac conditions, chronic pulmonary conditions, diabetes, etc.
- Patients frequently cared for at SCH and anticipated to have multiple visits at SCH in the following 2 weeks
- New respiratory symptoms (cough or shortness of breath, with or without fever) AND being in ANY ONE of the following groups:
Seattle Children’s guidelines for testing will be updated as the situation changes.
Q: Will you notify PCPs of their patients’ coronavirus test results?
A: Yes, PCPs will receive notification from Seattle Children’s of their patient’s test result, regardless of whether it is positive or negative. In the latter instance PCPs can expect to receive a copy of our standard lab report via fax. (Please note: inconclusive results are being treated as “positive” until confirmed by the State or CDC.)
We are also providing test results to families and directing them to contact their child’s PCP if their child’s test is negative and they have follow-up questions. We are letting families know we will have their results within 48-72 hours of testing.
Q: Is Seattle Children’s offering more telemedicine/telephone visits in the wake of COVID-19?
A: We are exploring ways to continue seeing children for their appointments without having them visit our facilities physically.
- Telephone visits (i.e. non-video): our schedulers have already started offering some patients a telephone visit when that is appropriate for their condition.
- Telehealth visits: Seattle Children’s has assembled a team to explore expedited expansion of our telehealth services and will share more information when we have it.
