A dermatologist in Detroit supports emergency department care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dr. Stein Gold's story
Linda Stein Gold, MD, FAAD, Director of Dermatology Clinical Research, Henry Ford Health System
Detroit was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, becoming one of the initial hot spots in the United States in the early spring of 2020. At Henry Ford Health System, many of us in the dermatology department volunteered to assist in the emergency department, where our colleagues needed additional support.
We are now fully immersed in the ED, handling COVID-19 testing and providing an extra set of hands, which frees up our emergency medicine colleagues to focus on providing other care. Although the ED is very busy, it is very organized, and I feel very protected. Things in the ED are quite different from my normal dermatology practice; in fact, I’ve recently completed my first overnight shift in many years.
As dermatologists start to resume normal work hours and see patients both in person and virtually, our goal is to keep as many patients out of emergency departments and urgent care centers as possible.
It has been an honor to work alongside my colleagues in other specialties and do my part to support the people of Detroit during this incredibly stressful and unprecedented time.
The emergency physician's perspective
“Cases in Detroit quickly increased as COVID-19 spread across the United States in March and April. Our emergency department rapidly transitioned to a care model that allowed us to provide high quality critical care to acutely ill patients, to separate and keep safe those ED patients who were not having COVID symptoms, and to protect our staff from exposure while judiciously using our critical personal protective equipment supply. In order to operationalize our system, it was crucial to have support from our colleagues in other departments within the Henry Ford Medical Group. We much appreciated their willingness to help us and our patients in such a difficult and challenging time.”
─ Michael Nauss, MD, FACEP, Associate Medical Director (Operations), Henry Ford Hospital Department of Emergency Medicine
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