Covid-19 Safety Protocols

This plan was developed to keep our patients and staff members as safe as possible. As such, everyone who enters our clinic for services must commit to recommended and safe practices to minimize the risk and transmission of COVID-19. 

It must also be understood that if you are attending the practice for Chiropractic care you are providing consent to be receiving care when the recommended distancing measure guideline cannot be upheld due to the nature of the appointment.  

The overall goal of this protocol is to reduce potential COVID-19 transmission in our public setting. The measure in place are as follows:

• Ensuring the recommended distances are being followed (2 meters/6 feet). Our waiting room has been modified to increase the efficiency of patient movement. We have reduced our waiting room capacity from 6 to 2 chairs.
• We are only allowing a total of 7 patients in the office at a time. It is recommended you do not bring a guest or children at this time. If we are at risk of exceeding capacity, patients may be directed to form a line outside the practice and directed to come in once capacity is reduced.
• Please do not book if you, or someone in your household, are experiencing any symptoms which can be related to COVID-19 infections. If you are unsure please call 811 and/or use the BCCDC Self-Assessment Tool here.
• You are encouraged to sanitize your hands upon entering our practice. Hand washing and/or sanitizing options are available throughout the office.
• Additional cleaning procedures are in place as per BCCDC Guidelines.
• Appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment) is donned when and where required.
• As per the PHO (November 19, 2020), mask use is mandatory in all public settings, unless behind a barrier or in a private work area. Doctors or staff may advise patients to remove their mask for a short time for certain tests or procedures. Please advise our staff if you are physically unable to wear a mask (a medical note or other similar proof is not required and cannot be demanded).
• Our doctors and staff wear masks during your appointment.
  • Chiropractic clinics are deemed low risk of transmission whereby the adherence to the guidelines of social distancing and sanitization are most important (Worksafe BC).
• Staff must wear a mask where they are unable to distance from each other or patients.
• A plastic shield has been added between staff and patients at reception.
• As far as we know, we are meeting all professional recommendations according to our licensing bodies CCBC, PHO, BCCDC, and WorkSafeBC.

Before your appointment:

• Each patient is reminded to screen themselves for COVID-19 symptoms on their appointment reminder text/email sent out 24 hours before each appointment.
• Patients are again screened at the front door with appropriate signage, which asks them to stop and do not enter if they are sick or required to self-isolate.
• Every person, including guests or children, must complete the standard COVID-19 survey once they enter the practice before they proceed to any area where they are one-on-one with our doctors or staff without a barrier.
• Should a patient not answer the questions in a way that determines there is no known risk, then they will need to reschedule their appointment.

Symptoms of COVID-19 (Government of Canada)

COVID-19 affects different people in different ways. Most infected people will develop mild to moderate illness and recover without hospitalization.

Most common symptoms:

• Fever
• Dry cough
• Tiredness

Less common symptoms:

• Aches and pains
• Sore throat
• Diarrhoea
• Conjunctivitis
• Headache
• Loss of taste or smell
• A rash on skin, or discolouration of fingers or toes

Serious symptoms:

• Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath
• Chest pain or pressure
• Loss of speech or movement

Canceling or changing your appointment: 

• We still require adequate notice (minimum 12 hours) to change and/or cancel scheduled appointments.
• If you need to cancel/reschedule, you can call or text our office at 604.662.3304 or email us.
• Individuals who need to reschedule and postpone appointments due to having symptoms of COVID-19 will not be charged a cancellation fee.
• You are deemed a no-show and charged our cancellation fee if you are 20 minutes past your scheduled appointment time and without any notice that you require changing or cancelling an appointment due to COVID-19, or any other reason.

What you can expect when you attend your appointment:

• We have added sanitizing stations in each room and appropriate signage throughout the practice.
• When you arrive, we ask that you arrive on time. If you are running late or wanting to be seen early, call the office at 604.662.3304 for further instruction.
• Please maintain your distance at the front desk. Should you notice anyone else speaking to the front desk staff, or should you notice someone else entering the clinic, maintain your distance of 2m/6ft apart. Patients are expected to follow the social distancing rules at all times in the entire office.

Other considerations when attending an appointment:

• We encourage only the patient who has booked the appointment to attend. If this is not possible as you have dependents, please keep them close to you and move with you throughout your visit.
• Use the hand sanitizer as soon as you enter our space, hand wash in the bathroom, or bring your own hand sanitizer. Be mindful of any high contact touchpoints throughout the clinic.
• Use alternative forms of greetings and avoid handshaking or close contact.

What you need to know that we are doing to ensure a safe environment at The Powerhouse Chiropractic

Our team is working incredibly hard to ensure that you can follow the recommended distance while in our clinic, and that very limited contact (touch points) are required. This is maintained as best as we possibly can by:

• Limiting waiting room chairs to 2 from 6, all distanced 2m apart and using an outside line for any additional patients.
• Regularly cleaning high touch surfaces throughout the office throughout the day.
• Sanitizing and cleaning our chiropractic tables between every single patient.
• Staff regularly sanitizing and hand washing throughout the day. The doctors sanitize their hands between every single patient.
• Emailed receipts to the email on file.
• Credit Cards, which are stored safely on file, is the preferred method of payment. When this is not possible, we encourage use of the “tap” option on the payment terminal when possible.
• Staff & Chiropractor will adhere to social distancing rules, sanitizing rules, hygiene rules, and BCCDC guidelines outside the office and will report if they begin to experience symptoms and self-isolate upon experiencing COVID symptoms. Doctors and staff complete health screenings before commencing work each day.

Professional Obligations:

• The Powerhouse Chiropractic is following all suggested and recommendations that were shared with us on May 15th, 2020 by WorksafeBC. These recommendations are also in accordance with our regulatory bodies and meet our licensing requirements.
• No guarantees have been made or can be made that you will not contact COVID-19 while seeking treatment at our office.
• Thank you for your patience during this difficult time, we are honoured to be able to care for you.

The Team at The Powerhouse Chiropractic