Your Health Cannot Be Put On Hold…..Staying Healthy in the Midst of the Covid-19 Crisis
Understandably our attention is currently turned to the events surrounding the coronavirus. It is the first pandemic that most of us have ever lived through with no clear timeline as yet, as to when our lives will return to normal. Whilst Covid-19 has, for the most part, put a halt on visiting workplaces, schools, places of social interaction and worship, your health cannot be put on hold.
The Australian Government recently urged the public to not put off seeing one’s GP. It is essential to continue to attend regular health care appointments, such as routine check-ups for chronic conditions, mental health reviews and preventative health appointments such as screening and vaccination. This includes being vaccinated for the flu, as soon as possible, as it appears from the experience in the Northern Hemisphere that simultaneous infection with influenza and Covid-19 results in poorer outcomes. Particularly in the face of Covid-19, optimising the treatment of chronic pre-existing conditions is of paramount importance and cannot afford to be neglected.
How we are keeping our clinic safe for you
Airlie Women’s Clinic has continued to adapt its practice and protocols in response to the current pandemic so as to minimize the risk to patients and staff alike. Since the establishment of the first Covid-19 testing centres in Victoria, all patients have been screened for symptoms and risk factors at the time of making appointments (by phone and online) and again before entering the building. Those meeting the eligibility criteria for Covid-19 testing have been requested to attend a testing centre directly.
As well as social distancing measures and strict sanitation and protection, we are minimising the number of people in the clinic at any one time by requesting that patients arrive but wait in their cars or outside the clinic until they are phoned by their doctor.
Your doctor will take this opportunity to once again screen for symptoms, determine the nature of the visit, and will make every effort to conduct as much of the consultation as possible at this 1st stage. This allows the doctor to be fully prepared for you when you are asked to enter directly into their consulting room, bypassing the waiting room altogether and minimising face-to-face contact time.
If you are unsure about whether you should be making an appointment with your doctor, call the clinic and discuss these concerns with our reception staff. With the advent of the new government telehealth initiatives, if you are in imposed isolation or at higher risk of covid infection, we may be able to consult eligible patients over the phone or video.
Being a legitimate reason to leave your home, and where every effort has been made to provide a safe environment, visiting your doctor when needed, should not be avoided.