Jim Miller: On the Job
Being Together While We’re Apart
Because we all miss our Fondren family, here are our Sequester Stories—a series of stories and photos by Fondren folks sharing what our “pandemic lives” are about.
Jim Miller is a Certified Family Nurse Practitioner at UMMC's Adult Specialty Care Clinic and the TEAM Clinic.
Hello Fondren Family,
My journey through the Covid-19 pandemic has been anything but sequestered, regarding work. Luckily, I have continued to work with few setbacks. I have continued to go in to work, even though I had the option to stay home through May. I work at the Jackson Medical Mall and walk about 40 yards in the door to my office, where I stay the rest of the day. Also, all University of Mississippi Medical Center employees must wear masks at all times in public spaces.
In the very early days of the pandemic, we continued to see patients in the clinic but utilized lots of handwashing and social distancing. Patients were not allowed into the clinic if they had any fever or shortness of breath. We provided a telephone number on the clinic door so that we could triage them by telephone and give them appropriate information for care, if they arrived at the clinic.
Very shortly after that (about one week), we were moved to a Level II for clinical care. All clinics were closed to in-person visits, and we began seeing patients by telemedicine visits. Initially, we called patients and only spoke to them by telephone for an Audio-Only encounter because there was a shortage of cameras and headsets to complete Audio-Visual calls. Plus, providers who had always provided in-person care had to be trained on how to use the Audio-Video equipment. Now we have cameras and headsets, and many visits can be conducted in an Audio-Video format. We are still working out the kinks and there are two platforms that can be used. One sends the patient a text and the other sends them an email. As you can see in the photos, the lighting is also crucial so that the patient can see my face. Typically, the lights under my cabinet would be pointed down and back, but for an Audio-Visual visit, they must be pointed toward me for better lighting.
As you can imagine, this was not only difficult for the providers, but many patients that we care for also struggled with the technology. Many do not have smartphones, computers, the internet, or an email address. For those patients, we still perform an Audio-Only calls. For others that do have a smartphone or computer, we are conducting Audio-Visual visits.
Other than work, there has been a lot of time spent at home and a lot more cooking at home. John and I did exercise outside in the early days of the pandemic, but now gyms have reopened with half class sizes and precautions for social distancing and sanitizing equipment. We are happy that we can now run on a treadmill. The pavement at 53 years old is tough on the body.
We have both been healthy and have eaten way too much. I hope that all of you are doing well and look forward to a time when we can all be together again, even if we are 6 feet apart.
Love and Air Hugs,
Jim Miller
