Columbia-Based Physician Group at the Forefront of COVID-19 Strategy
Staff Report From Columbia CEO
Tuesday, April 14th, 2020
SC House Calls, a Columbia-based and family-owned physician group, has invested heavily to help fight the spread of COVID-19. Over the past three weeks, the healthcare company has tested nearly 700 of its front-line employees in South Carolina to help mitigate the spread.
Scott Middleton, Founder of SC House Calls, said, “We’re analyzing the studies of other cities and countries around the world and early-on we learned what is helping to stop the spread of the virus – wide-spread testing.”
Mike Ryan, Head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Emergency Program, has called on other countries to apply the lessons learned in places like South Korea, saying conducting wide-spread testing of both symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, quarantining positive cases, has managed to suppress the spread of the virus.
Middleton said, “If we’re not testing both symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals, the virus will continue spreading. Meaning, our businesses will remain closed, jobs will be permanently lost, and more lives will be lost or shattered.”
Sara Middleton, Scott’s daughter and business partner in SC House Calls, said, “There is no shortage of tests available in SC – there is simply a shortage of governments or organizations willing to pay for them. We’ve invested in testing our front-line healthcare workers because they see 27,000 senior adult patients across the state, and it’s well worth the money to ensure we are protecting our employees and our patients.”
She continued, “We are at a turning point. The actions taken by our state and local governments are critical to helping control the spread of the virus. Weeks ago, I began speaking with local government officials, showing them the research and data around testing, and stressing the importance of wide-spread testing. At the end of the day, our healthcare company is entrusted with people’s lives, and we chose to step up to the plate and take action weeks ago.”