A phased approach for resuming allergy and immunology clinical services is appropriate during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new recommendations published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
In March 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic was increasing in North America, shelter-in-place orders were instituted and nonessential ambulatory care was significantly curtailed including allergy/immunology services. However, with rates of new infections and fatalities reaching a plateau and/or declining, the restrictions on provision of routine ambulatory care are lifting, and there is a need to help guide the allergy/immunology clinician on how to reinitiate services.
A diverse group of academic and private practice allergy/immunology specialists conducted an organized discussion of the issues and potential approaches to reopening a clinical allergy/immunology practice and developed guidance in the form of consensus-based, best-practice recommendations.
