Virtual house calls flourish in the age of coronavirus

Volunteer groups in Georgia are making cloth masks for non-coronavirus patients at local hospitals so that personal protective equipment can be reserved for medical staff in direct contact with COVID-19 patients. Although these masks do not provide the same kind of protection as medically regulated masks, they do serve as a back-up and thousands have been delivered to area hospitals.

To allow patients to still see their doctors during the coronavirus pandemic, insurance providers have eliminated some of the barriers for providers to be reimbursed for telehealth appointments. This change in policy has helped doctors in Maine grow their telehealth practices in ways that may outlast the pandemic.

DOROT is a non-profit organization that matches seniors with younger adult volunteers for social visits to combat isolation and loneliness and to promote intergenerational friendships. Many of the seniors are widowers and social isolation can lead to negative health consequences. The organization also delivers fresh meals and holds other events, but was unable to operate as usual once the Covid-19 pandemic hit, so DOROT helped seniors set up Zoom for online conferencing. The group has matched 500 seniors with volunteers and advises similar programs across the country. Many pairs have formed deep friendships.

Two medical professionals, one in New York and one in the Phillipines, have launched a free online seminar that aims to help Filipino and Filipino American frontline workers who are experiencing mental health concerns due to coronavirus stressors. The program is just one of several that is helping medical professionals reduce the stigma around talking about mental health.

Amid the pandemic, medical researchers and an abortion-rights advocacy group in the U.S. are working to make the abortion pill available via mail. Although there is ambiguity surrounding the rules and regulations of how the pill must be distributed to patients, some doctors have helped efforts by agreeing to register with F.D.A.-approved manufacturers and a handful of states are allowing the pill to be mailed after an in-person ultrasound has been conducted.

The CARES Act was meant to help small businesses, including hospitals, find financial stability during the coronavirus pandemic, but confusing guidelines and a lack of oversight have impeded the success. This reality has been especially difficult for rural hospitals, some of which "have left millions in relief aid untouched, spiraling deeper into debt for fear that the wrong decision could force them to return money."

Bronx shelters have teamed up with industry professionals to put together an after-school program offering students an opportunity to receive mentorship. In the program, which is based around video game-themed writing workshops, students are able to practice their writing skills, while being able to manage pandemic-induced isolation by connecting with other students and instructors.

To help address burnout for child welfare workers in Knox County, Ohio, Knox County Job & Family Services has launched a two-pronged approach that aims to offer wellbeing services to employees. Although the Covid pandemic impeded the rollout of these self-care services and resources, feedback has been positive.

What began as informal online gaming sessions grew into a group of hundreds of LGBTQ gamers, calling themselves Charlotte Gaymers Network, that fostered community and a safe place to gather during the pandemic. Though most of the network's events had to be held virtually, that ended up meeting a need, as more traditional in-person meeting spaces for Charlotte's LBGTQ community had shut down. The group promotes inclusivity in gaming designs and uses events like a tournament to build its following.

Community health workers with North Carolina Formerly Incarcerated Transition Program (NC FIT) counsel people recently released from jails and prisons to help them get the care they need for mental and physical health problems. The program closes some but not all of the gaps left by the state's inadequate Medicaid coverage and prison health services. Banking on the trust that comes with shared experiences, the formerly incarcerated health workers can connect people with medication-assisted treatment for substance use, covid-related treatments, and mental health care, all common ailments post-incarceration.