Your Trusted Resource for GI and Liver Care in the Greater Austin Area Since 1980

Austin Gastroenterology (AG) is the largest physician group in Central Texas that specializes in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of gastrointestinal diseases. You'll receive the very best care available from physicians who are board certified in GI, who are committed to the latest medical advances, and who vow to give you the best healthcare solutions available.

COVID-19 Updates
(1/14/21)

Coronavirus continues to be a rapidly evolving situation and we share your concerns about the health and welfare of our community. We are doing our part to limit the spread of COVID-19 by maintaining strict precautionary measures in our clinics and endoscopy centers.  Texas is in Phase 1B for vaccinations and vaccines are currently being distributed to healthcare workers, which includes physicians and staff in our clinics and endoscopy centers, and to people with underlying conditions that put them in a high risk (criteria outlined below). We are committed to keeping our patients, their families and our employees safe while providing timely care for patients in our community.

Texas Phase 1B Vaccine Priorities

• People 65 years of age and older
• People 16 years of age and older with at least one chronic medical condition that puts them at increased risk for severe illness from the virus that causes COVID-19, such as but not limited to:

• • Cancer
  • Chronic kidney disease
  • COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
  • Heart conditions, such as heart failure, coronary artery disease or cardiomyopathies
  • Solid organ transplantation
  • Obesity and severe obesity (body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher)
  • Pregnancy
  • Sickle cell disease
  • Type 2 diabetes mellitus

Patients who need certification of an underlying condition to qualify for Phase 1B vaccinations should contact their primary care physician to request a letter confirming their condition. For answers to some  of our patients most Frequently Asked Questions about the COVID vaccines click here.

SAFETY PRECAUTIONS IN OUR OFFICES

To protect our community while continuing to safely provide our patients with the care they need, we are continue to follow current guidance of public health authorities in addition to our own best judgement to limit potential exposure to COVID-19 in our offices:

• We offer  TELEHEALTH VISITS for both new and established patients. You can request your Telehealth Visit online, or call your AG office to schedule.
• Patients who have a cough, difficulty breathing, fever of 99.6 or higher, or who have been in contact with someone with any of these symptoms for the past two weeks, to call us to reschedule their appointments until COVID-19 vaccinations have been widely distributed throughout the Central Texas area.
• Every patient, visitor, physician, and staff member is screened for symptoms related to COVID-19 (including temperature) prior to entering our facilities. COVID-19 testing will be required for some patients prior to certain procedures according to safety  guidelines set forth by the American College of Gastroenterology and the Texas Medical Board.
• We are restricting caregiver and family member access into our clinics and endoscopy centers. For your safety and ours, we ask that all caregivers and family members wait in their cars during patient appointments or procedures.
• Social distancing and masks are required for all patients, physicians and staff inside our offices.   In keeping with the latest safety recommendations from the CDC,  non-vented masks are required in our offices.  People with vented masks will be given a non-vented mask and asked to change before entering our facilities.

Safety Precautions at our Endoscopy Centers and Special Instructions for Patients 

The following information will guide patients through the COVID-19 changes at our Endoscopy Centers.  We have also included some general information that will help you to prepare for your procedure visit. We have are 3 Endoscopy center locations, so if you are unsure of which location you are scheduled please verify that with the physician’s office.

Please take your temperature the day of your procedure before you come in. If your temperature is over 100 degrees, please call the center before you come.

To keep the number of people inside our offices to a minimum, we ask that your driver not enter the building, but be prepared to receive a phone call from your physician and from our post-operative staff after your procedure has been completed. Your driver must either stay on the building premises, or must be back here at your scheduled procedure time.

Upon entrance to the center, our screener will provide you with a mask, take your temperature, and ask you the following questions:

• Do you have a current have (or have you recently had) a temperature greater than 100 degrees, or have you recently felt feverish?
• Do you have a cough that is not related to allergies or a chronic lung disease?
• Are you experiencing shortness of breath?
• Do you have any chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle/body aches, headache, sore throat, or new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea?
• Have you been in close contact with any person with a flu-like illness, Coronavirus, Ebola, Measles, MERS, SARS, or TB?
• Have you (or anyone close to you) traveled outside the US, or to another state inside the US in the past 30 days?

As you read through these questions now, if your answer is yes to any of these questions, please call us before you come in for your procedure.

Please make sure you know your driver’s phone number as you will be asked to provide that information to our screener.

All staff and patients at our center are required to wear a non-vented mask.

If you wear hearing aids, please wear them to the center so that we can better communicate with you.

Please leave all jewelry and/or valuables at home.

You will be expected to confirm your medical history and your current medications along with doses with our staff before the procedure.

If you are scheduled for a colonoscopy, use the prep sheet provided by the office. Only clear liquids are allowed the day before your procedure.  In addition, please do not put anything in your mouth 4 hours prior to your scheduled procedure time.

If you are scheduled for an upper endoscopy (EGD), please do not eat any solid foods after 10pm the night before your procedure. In addition, please do not put anything in your mouth 4 hours prior to your scheduled procedure time.

Please make sure you have held your blood thinner as instructed by the office.

If you have any questions regarding the COVID instructions, or symptoms you may be experiencing, do not hesitate to call and speak to a nurse.

AUSTIN ENDOSCOPY CENTER LOCATIONS:

Austin Endoscopy Center – Shoal Creek Blvd.  512-371-1519
Austin Endoscopy Center – James Casey St.  512-532-8000
Austin Endoscopy Center – Bee Cave, TX   737-207-7616

Again, the health and safety of our patients and staff remains our highest priority at Austin Gastroenterology. We will continue to follow guidance provided  by State and Local public health authorities such as  the World Health Organization (WHO), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), and modify our operations accordingly so we can continue to safely provide our patients with the care they need.