Editor’s Note: Cheryl Bryan is a practicing nurse at Abigail Health Care Diabetes Clinic in Texas City. The following is Bryan’s first-hand account on how the clinic, run by Dr. Cheryl Morgan, has continued to address the needs of their patients, some of which come as far as Harris and Brazoria Counties.
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Dr. Morgan has been making progress with her clinic in Texas City. Abigail Health Care Diabetes Clinic has been in operation for less than one year, meeting the needs of patients without health insurance. Her clinic targeted patients with diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol and having significant challenges paying for healthcare services. With the increase in the numbers of positive COVID-19 cases, Dr. Morgan did not anticipate a massive slowing of her practice as patients cancelled appointments to save funds during the quarantine.
While some patients cancelled, some were desperately seeking assistance to receive her services and to get their diabetes medications refilled. The major problem was that some patients were unable to pay for the services. The office visit is only $49, but patients are required to pay for additional services such as labs. Some patients were fearful of leaving their homes, which resulted in Dr. Morgan offering service at a further reduced cost via telemedicine. Some patients had their prescriptions renewed for free because they were unable to pay due to loss of jobs. Dr. Morgan just couldn’t feel at peace to deny patients of such an important need. This is a hard hit for a new clinic that is still in the growing stage.
There was some hope as the Texas City-La Marque Chamber of Commerce was very helpful in educating small businesses about available resources for grants and loans. Unfortunately, the clinic has been unsuccessful in getting any of those aides. One grant denied the application because the clinic was a non-profit with tax exempted status. The CARES-act-provider-relief fund yielded a check for $6.26 that was awarded to the clinic.
Another major challenge faced was the inability to source enough PPE needed to protect herself and patients. Orders on Amazon also slowed down. More cleaning is required to maintain a safe environment and even that was a challenge since all the cleaning products were non-existent in the grocery store. Several attempts had to be made at various stores to get the necessary cleaning products.
Dr. Morgan is no stranger to improvising. She was born and trained in Jamaica and is quite familiar with how to function creatively and safely. She created her own PPE from basic supplies at her local Walmart with hoodies made from raincoat material, goggles and face shields from sheet protectors.
Patients are pre-screened prior to face-to-face office visits, but that is still not comforting since patients are not forthcoming with revealing all their symptoms out of fear they won’t be seen. One of her patients only declared they had been sent home from work for suspected COVID-19 symptoms in the middle of the visit. But Dr. Morgan is always attired for each visit in full PPE.
The psychological impact of being a frontline healthcare provider in this pandemic is pronounced. Dr. Morgan has small children at home and has to be very vigilant in protecting them. The symptoms of COVID-19 can be delayed for two weeks, by which time all her family members could be exposed. This pandemic has really allowed her to view small things she took for granted or paid little attention to the frequency of their occurrence. This is the frequency of her 5-year-old daughter hugging her and her need to be kissed and cuddled. Each physical contact with a patient is potentially a 14-day sentence in anticipation of COVID-19 symptoms.
After treating each patient, all surfaces where patients had contact with is cleaned thoroughly. Going home from work is now a process. It requires meticulous thought process how to remove all clothing, wash immediately and head straight to the shower. The 5-year-old now understands that she must not touch her when she comes through the door.
Dr. Morgan takes great pride in her natural hair and like to wear it curly. A thoughtful evaluation of the pandemic revealed that her hair will remain covered for approximately 1-2 years until the pandemic passes. Nothing is left uncovered when treating her patients. She has moved from attiring in her professional clothing and white coat to looking like someone prepared to fight a battle with the invisible killer. Despite these changes, Dr. Morgan still feels a sense of pride and pleasure to serve patients who still request to be seen face to face. It’s ironic to see patients entering the clinic with their masks and Dr. Morgan also wearing hers.
Dr. Morgan is committed to meet the needs of the community and patient care must go on. The pictures below speak volume in the drastic changes to the face of healthcare in just a few short months.
1 comment
She is such a great help to our city. She is so passionate about her profession.