COVID-19 – General Practice planning for potential outbreaks

Key reminders for general practice 

• Sign-up to receive SEMPHN’s COVID-19 email here
• GP management of COVID Positive patients Pathway here 
• Use our Summer Planning Checklist to help you prepare for a potential summer outbreak here
• Sign-up to receive DHHS health alerts and advisories here 
• Check the  DHHS novel coronavirus information page  regularly for updates about the novel coronavirus here. 
• A list of current locations with an interactive map is available on the where to get tested website page here. 

COVID-19 Clinical Guidance and Pathway

GP management of COVID Positive Patients Pathway

Access recordings of our two webinars about the COVID Positive Patients Pathway:

1. Alfred Hospital: Managing COVID Positive Patients Within the Pathway Model, 30 September, 2020

Meeting Recording: Access Passcode: T#5cH@$x

2. Monash Hospital: Managing COVID Positive Patients Within the Pathway Model, 11 November, 2020

Meeting Recording: Access Passcode: VIY0xuR=

PPE requests 

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) may be requested when a practice, pharmacy or clinic is unable to secure commercial supply for their team and are delivering face to face care. 

Please refer to the DOH guidance on supply of PPE:

• PHN distributed PPE for health professionals here
• Addendum relating to PHN distributed eye protection here
• Addendum relating to PHN distributed gowns here
• Cleaning and disinfecting reusable eye protection here.
• Please utilise PPE in line with current DHHS guidance found here. 

General Practices and ACCHOs which are NOT testing for COVID-19 

Please use this link: General Practice/ACCHO PPE

• Level 1 surgical masks to work with at-risk or COVID-19 community members
• P2/N95 masks. PHNs are asked to conserve stocks of P2/N95 respirators as far as possible. They are only required for aerosol-generating procedures. 
• Goggles (protective eyewear) are available. Please request up to 30 depending on the size of your practice. 

General Practices and ACCHOs which are TESTING for COVID-19

Please use this link: COVID-19 testing General Practice/ACCHO

• Level 1 surgical masks to work with at-risk or COVID-19 community members
• Level 2/3 surgical masks for COVID-19 testing. 
• P2/N95 masks. PHNs are asked to conserve stocks of P2/N95 respirators as far as possible. They are only required for aerosol-generating procedures and respiratory assessments. 
• Goggles (protective eyewear) are currently available. Please request up to 30 depending on the size of your practice. 
• Gowns are currently available (only to be used when COVID testing).

PPE suppliers

To assist local health services with sourcing PPE, the following supplier details may be useful. Click here to download the PPE supplier spreadsheet.

Disclaimer:

These businesses are not affiliated with South Eastern Melbourne Primary Health Network (SEMPHN). Please contact these businesses directly for more information. SEMPHN cannot answer any questions related to these suppliers. SEMPHN cannot guarantee the quality of the PPE supplied by these vendors. SEMPHN is not obligated to include any businesses in this list. 

MBS COVID-19 Telehealth items 

Visit mbsonline.gov.au for a summary of the changes and a list of item numbers. 

Our telehealth HealthVitalIT article lists the items and requirements  (see the COVID19 section).  We are continually updating this article to add practical advice for remote consultations,  so it's a good idea to bookmark the page and check for updates every now and then. There are lots of useful tips in here. 

If you're using the bulk billed MBS telehealth items you can access HealthDirect's VideoCall platform free via SEMPHN. For more information, see our Telehealth page.