Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital

Situation Update

As of Friday, March 27, 2020 11:20 PM EDT

CALL IF YOU HAVE COVID-19 SYMPTOMS:  Veterans enrolled with Bedford VA Medical Center: If you have symptoms of fever, cough and/or shortness of breath, sign-in to My HealtheVet and send a secure message to your primary care provider or call our patient call center at (800) 838-6331 and ask for guidance before visiting the Bedford VAMC or a community clinic. Please confirm your appointment with your primary care provider prior to arrival.

CBOCs TEMPORARILY CLOSED:  Effective March 30, 2020, the Gloucester, Haverhill and Lynn Community Based Outpatient Clinics are temporarily closed. Haverhill and Lynn will conduct face to face visits as an exception only, if deemed a necessity by your provider. Walk-in appointments will not be accepted.

We highly encourage our Veterans to consider using our telehealth and virtual care options. Our telehealth providers can evaluate your symptoms and provide a diagnosis and comprehensive care, all without leaving the house. Our telephone care line is open 24 hours, 7 days a week at 800-838-6331. Read the full story at https://www.bedford.va.gov/features/Bedford_VAMC_temporarily_closes_outpatient_clinics.asp.

SCREENING:  In an abundance of caution, we are conducting a 100 percent screening process for COVID-19 symptoms of all patients and authorized visitors prior to entering one of our facilities. Be prepared for delays.

Drive-through screening--not testing--will be available Monday through Friday mornings from 6:30 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. at the red tent in front of Building 1 at the Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital in Bedford, Mass. Access points for screenings on weekdays are Buildings 2 and 78, from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. After hours and on weekends, screening must be accomplished at Building 78. In addition, the ENRM pool and gymnasium are closed until further notice.

NO VISITORS, PLEASE:  In order to limit COVID-19 exposure risk to our most susceptible patient population, effective immediately, access to the Community Living Centers is permitted for designated staff and visitors to Veterans in palliative care only.

• All prescriptions that have been routed for window pickup that can be mailed are being changed on an hourly basis and sent through the mail. We’ve made exceptions for mail processing for 
  • Homeless patients that do not have an address, 
  • Controlled substances that are part of a weekly regimen (mail will not get to the patient on time), and
  • Emergency medications that need to be started immediately or the patient is completely out of their medications.
• All prescriptions that have been routed for the mail are being processed immediately to prevent delays

We encourage Veterans to use the secure messaging function in MyHealtheVet to communicate with their providers and will continue to keep you updated.

More information for Veterans is here: https://www.blogs.va.gov/VAntage/72615/vas-recommendations-help-slow-covid-19-virus/.

For information on the COVID-19 virus go to:  https://www.va.gov/coronavirus/.