Keeping families of front-line doctors safe: UCSF Fresno offering housing due to COVID-19
Some local doctors who are caring for patients with the coronavirus might be able to sleep with a bit more ease.
The University of California-San Francisco’s medical branch in downtown Fresno is offering free temporary housing for its doctors who are attending to potential cases of COVID-19.
It’s part of the medical branch’s efforts to alleviate some concerns that front-line health professionals might have about unknowingly catching the coronavirus and spreading it to those in their household.
UCSF Fresno on Tuesday started paying for rooms at the downtown Radisson hotel for eligible residents, fellows and faculty.
“There is increased anxiety right now as a doctor and it creates a really stressful situation to be in,” said Dr. Lori Weichenthal, assistant dean for graduate medical Eeucation at UCSF Fresno. “This program is taking one anxiety off of their plate.
“It gives them an opportunity to stay in the temporary housing and they don’t have to worry about infecting their family members. A lot of our people are living with elderly parents or have children, and they have concerns about caring for sick patients and passing it on to their loved ones.”
UCSF Fresno has more than 250 residents (graduates of medical school who are doctors in training), 50 fellows (completed residency and training further in a specialty) and about 250 core faculty.
Of them, about 200 deal with confirmed or potential cases of the novel coronavirus on a daily basis while working at various hospitals in town, including Community Regional Medical Center and the Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
“The people in our program, they’re still very new and learning the profession of being a physician,” Weichenthal said. “And we want to make sure they are safe. And understandably, they want to make sure that their families are safe.”
Though other residency programs in California already had been offered similar housing assistance programs for its members, UCSF Fresno is believed to be the first medical organization in the Fresno area to provide the temporary housing option.
On Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom had the rest of California’s medical field follow suit and announced that the state would provide healthcare workers with hotel rooms at no or low-cost.
“We need to do better for our healthcare heroes,” Newsom tweeted. “Too many are nervous about infecting a loved one. Or working long hours and driving home with little sleep.”
It remained unclear how Newsom’s state program would affect UCSF Fresno’s temporary housing option. The medical branch was awaiting more details of Newsom’s plans.
In the meantime, some UCSF Fresno doctors already were taking advantage of their new hotel accommodations with eight members booked as recently as Thursday.
The first doctor to stay at the downtown Radisson through the UCSF Fresno housing program was a faculty member who was concerned that he contracted COVID-19. He later tested as negative and decided to check out after a few nights to return to his home.
“The feedback we’ve gotten so far is that it’s really helpful,” Weichenthal said, “and they’re very appreciative of it.”
This story was originally published April 11, 2020 at 10:04 PM.
