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Love from PCA

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To our dear community,
 
We are 1 month into facing the COVID-19 pandemic locally and what a strange and difficult time it is.  We hope that you and yours are taking care as best you can, getting fresh air, deep breaths, and staying healthy and safe.  We are dreaming and scheming our garden for this year, staying home, and thinking of you all often.  
 
Several of you have asked how you can support the clinic right now.  We have started selling gift cards online that you can redeem for yourself, as a gift, or as way to support PCA’s re-opening when it is safe to do so.  We know that so many of you are financially struggling right now and that there are so many critical ways to support the most marginalized and vulnerable in our communities during this time, so buy a giftcard if you are able and we understand if now is a time when you are directing your resources elsewhere.  
 
We wanted to share a few helpful resources to help you during this time:
 
We’ve been working with our friend’s at POCA clinics across the U.S. and Canada to create this ever expanding library of DIY acupressure videos that we hope will be helpful while you aren’t able to access regular acupuncture.  
 
The AMOR Network has created a very comprehensive (and frequently updated) local Rhode Island resource list that you can check out here. 
 
We miss you all and are looking forward to the day when we can see you snoozing in a recliner again.  Stay home, stay connected, stay in touch. 
 
With care,
the folks at PCA
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PCA Closing 3/13-3/28

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Unprecedented times call for unprecedented measures.

As of today (Friday March 13th at 2pm), we are closing Providence Community Acupuncture for 2 weeks until March 28th, in light of the COVID19/coronavirus epidemic.  We don’t take this decision at all lightly, as we know that many in our community rely on PCA for healthcare. We are closing because we take our mandate to protect community health so seriously. Evidence all around the world shows that the best way to ensure that this epidemic threatens as few of our community as possible is to limit its spread through physical distancing.  As you all know, we are typically open 365 days a year, barring major snowstorms. The need to “flatten the curve” of COVID19/coronavirus to try and lessen its impact on our community is the only time we have closed the clinic for more than 2 days in a row in 14 years of operation.  

To be clear, we are not aware of any confirmed case of COVID19/coronavirus in our staff or patient community.  We are doing this as a precaution and to follow public health advice to limit gatherings of people. We hope that our closing will be part of the momentum of people staying home to prevent a severe outbreak.  If ours and others’ measures to encourage physical distancing are successful, we may never see COVID19 become as widespread and destructive as it is in other places.

 

In 2 weeks, we hope to be open, but we will be evaluating and assessing this situation as it continues.  We thank you in advance for your support and patience, and look forward to seeing you when we open our doors again soon.

 

We will remain active on social media, so you can stay connected to the clinic.  Expect self-care tips for boosting immunity, strengthening and healing your respiratory system, and calming anxiety in the near future.

 

We hope that you all will stay connected to your communities and support networks in whatever ways you can, from a distance, and that you will reach out to local resources (we will have another post on our website soon about that) if you need support.   The need for universal healthcare, paid sick time for all workers, a robust social safety net, and community networks of support and solidarity couldn’t be clearer. Let’s stay connected, and get through this together.

 

With care,

the folks at PCA

 

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How We Care for Community

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COVID 19 Update

Like many of you, we are staying up to date on information and guidance from the RI Department of Health and CDC in order to continue to assess what our best choices are for taking care of our community and doing our part to limit the spread of COVID19/coronavirus.

As we watch many institutions that host large gatherings close, we know that we also may have to close our doors for a few weeks at some point, given our commitment to community health and wellbeing.  We don’t have a concrete plan for that yet, and of course, want to be open as much as possible to continue to ensure our community has access to affordable, accessible acupuncture which is important to many now more than ever. 

If you are looking for some acupuncture relief, we recommend you come in for a treatment sooner rather than later, as this situation is changing frequently and we are constantly assessing how to best meet the needs of our community.  Remember, acupuncture is a great tool for managing stress and anxiety and for boosting immunity, as well as for relief from pain, allergies, etc.  

What is heartening to us during this difficult time is watching how many people and organizations are shifting their frame from individual to collective health and well being.  We hope for strong and healthy lungs, healthcare (including testing and treatment for COVID19), and growing solidarity for all of our communities. 

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Staying Healthy Together

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As you’ve probably heard by now, the coronavirus (COVID-19) has landed in RI. It’s not time to panic, but it’s a good time to review what we can all do to reduce transmission of this and other contagious diseases. And it’s a good reminder of how interconnected we humans are… we can help each other.

First and foremost, we ask you to stay home if you’ve got a fever, or chills or are vomiting. We do not, and never have, charged a fee for appointments cancelled because of illness –– even same day cancels. But we do ask that you give us a heads up. In light of COVID-19, if you’re caring for someone who is sick, we suggest rescheduling your appointments until everyone is recovered.

Please be fever free for 48 hours before coming to PCA for acupuncture, for the time-being.

Take care of yourself, and take precautions. They say those cheap paper masks don’t work well to protect you from respiratory illness, but hand washing sure as heck does! Wash your hands. Get adequate sleep, eat nourishing foods, get some acupuncture. But Wash. Your. Hands. A recent study showed that washing ones hands five times a day reduces the likelihood of contracting a respiratory illness by 45%!

Be responsible to others. This includes staying home if you’re sick. It includes coughing into your elbow or a tissue. If you’re under the weather, or if you’ve been around someone who is, consider avoiding places where you might contact vulnerable people (kids, elders, immune-compromised folks), like daycare centers, nursing homes, and hospitals. 

What we’re doing. We always have, and always will, sanitize our hands thoroughly before and after each client.  We’ve put out extra bottles of hand sanitizer for you to use around the clinic but please don’t use the sanitizer on our needling stations.  We’re doing extra cleaning around the clinic. Our washing machines are running overtime. We pledge to stay home if we’re sick. And we’re keeping an eye on the Rhode Island Department of Health for updates and recommendations.

Closing requests, in view of a possible pandemic: Check in with loved ones. Do not engage in xenophobia. Stay informed; avoid unreliable news sources. And support local and national efforts to enact universal health care. If some of us are left behind, we’re all at risk.  You can sign this petition to urge the RI legislature to take immediate action to ensure that everyone in Rhode Island has access to enough paid sick time so that no one’s choosing between making this month’s rent and staying home if they are sick!

With all that said, there’s currently no reason to freak out. If you’re feeling fine but a little stressed or sore, we hope to see you at the clinics. In fact, we depend on it.
So let’s help each other through this unsettling time. Remember that regular acupuncture is an excellent immune-booster and stress reliever so we encourage you to come for treatment as part of staying healthy.

Thanks to our friends at Westside Wellness and Manchester Acupuncture Studio for much of the text of this email: we are, and always have been, all in this together.  

With care,

the folks at PCA