During an emergency, the Victorian Department of Health has a number of responsibilities as outlined by the State Health Emergency Response Plan. The Plan covers a wide range of events, including fire, flood, heatwaves, epidemic, wide-scale food poisoning, and train or plane accident.

To support the Plan, Primary Health Networks assist with preparedness, response, and recovery, so that local communities have the best primary health available following an emergency.

SEMPHN is updating its list of primary health professionals, general practices, pharmacies and alcohol and other drugs services willing to respond in an emergency.

Examples of responding includes:

• Taking on additional patients for a short period of time
• Staffing a field clinic where local infrastructure is not available
• Caring for people affected by an emergency either locally or, if required, further afield.

In the event of an emergency, SEMPHN may send an initial SMS message asking for a response, so we know the potential capacity of the regional response. Depending on the context of the emergency, the SMS will be sent across the catchment or within a local area. The work is most likely to be volunteer-based.

Periodically, we will run a drill of the system. The SMS message will make it clear that it is a drill.

If you or your practice/organisation is interested, please complete this Emergency Response Survey.

Information gathered will be recorded in a secure, limited-access area of our database as well as being shared with the Department of Health for the purposes of the emergency response only.