Essentia Health Offers Tips To Navigating The Holidays While Staying Healthy
With the holidays upon us, Essentia Health is reminding patients of simple steps they can take to prevent seasonal illnesses, along with care options available if they do get sick.
Cases of RSV, influenza and COVID-19 are on the rise across our service area, and holiday gatherings increase the potential for those illnesses to spread. The key to staying healthy this season is to wash your hands; cover coughs and sneezes with a tissue or shirt sleeve; clean frequently touched surfaces; wear a mask when appropriate; and stay home if you are sick. It’s also a good idea to get your flu shot and COVID-19 booster and establish a relationship with a primary care provider to stay up to date on other preventive care.
At Essentia, we know that despite our best efforts to stay healthy, people still fall ill. If you do get sick, and your symptoms are not severe, consider using our easy-to-navigate and convenient immediate care tool. This allows patients to input information about their symptoms and learn what level of care is most appropriate.
Essentia has many virtual care options, which offer convenient, high-quality care without patients having to leave the comfort of their homes.
E-Visits: Quickly get medical care for 20 common conditions from an Essentia provider online. In many cases, providers make a diagnosis and create a personalized care plan in less than 60 minutes.
24/7 Video Visits On Demand: Patients who use Essentia’s MyChart patient portal can connect with an urgent care provider online via a secure video chat.
Nurse Care Line: Not sure which of our care options is right for you? Essentia patients can get medical advice from one of our registered nurses around the clock. You can either call your primary care clinic and ask to speak with a registered nurse from the Nurse Care Line or call (800) 714-4646.
We also offer several in-person, same-day care options to help you when your illness takes a turn for the worse, including walk-in care, urgent care and emergency medicine services.
Patients who have severe or life-threatening symptoms should call 911 or seek emergency care.
We hope everyone can have a safe, healthy and happy holiday season while also limiting the spread of illness.