News

Communities in the Parkes Electorate are having their defences bolstered through a number of key General Practices establishing specialised clinics to diagnose patients for coronavirus and other respiratory illnesses.

Following the opening of a service in Dubbo, a COVID-19 Respiratory Clinic has been approved by the Federal Government for Cobar and commences operation today (Tuesday, May 12, 2020) by the NSW Outback Division of General Practice at 24 Harcourt Street under strict infection control guidelines.

Under the COVID-19 National Health Plan, the Commonwealth is supporting dedicated general practice respiratory clinics for patients with mild-to-moderate fever and respiratory symptoms.

Federal Member for Parkes and Minister for Regional Health, Mark Coulton, says “This is exciting news for Cobar as we continue to strengthen our local capacity in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.”

“The Federal Government has committed to establishing up to 100 GP-led respiratory clinics across Australia to assess patients with mild to moderate COVID-19 symptoms,” he said.

“These respiratory clinics are best placed to support people with a fever, cough, sore throat and other respiratory symptoms and will help to avoid the risk of infection in our local communities.

“The Federal Government has been working with local GPs and Aspen Medical - which has significant health emergency management experience in Australia and overseas - to roll out the Cobar clinic.”

Western NSW Primary Health Network (WNSW PHN) CEO Andrew Harvey says the Cobar Respiratory Clinic complements an enormous amount of work already undertaken by GPs and clinicians across hospital and primary health care, further strengthening the preparedness for COVID-19, and importantly also ensuring the vital business of regular primary care continues unhindered.

“This respiratory clinic provides additional capacity in Cobar to support early detection and reinforce services, and I’m very grateful for the support of both practices in helping to set up these important additions to our COVID-19 infrastructure,” Mr Harvey said.

Mr Harvey added that “While performing vitally important work in its own right, the Respiratory Clinic also provides added comfort for people without respiratory complaints to continue to visit their GP and other health professionals for regular check-ups and other issues, to ensure that small complaints now do not become major health concerns later.”

NSW Outback Division of General Practice General Manager Tanya Jackson said the Cobar clinic marks an important step in combatting the spread of COVID-19.
“The Outback Division of General Practice appreciates this opportunity from the Department of Health to fund the establishment of a respiratory clinic in Cobar, which will strengthen our ability and capacity to identify cases and respond to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Ms Jackson said.

“The clinic is led by an experienced GP and nurse, and its operations are designed to see patients with specific respiratory symptoms including cold, flu and COVID-19-like symptoms, and ensure these patients can access a GP appointment without posing additional infection risks to other patients, the community and the health workforce.”

Under the COVID-19 National Health Plan, the Commonwealth is supporting dedicated general practice respiratory clinics for patients with mild-to-moderate fever and respiratory symptoms.

The clinics will be staffed by local GPs who will assess, test and diagnose referred respiratory cases, including COVID-19, influenza and pneumonia, in a dedicated part of their premises, within strict criteria to safely manage infection control, as part of a FREE service to patients.

Working closely with the Department of Health and Aspen Medical, the WNSWPHN has collaborated with the Western and Far Western Local Health Districts to ensure a collaborative response to COVID-19 across the region, while also assisting General Practices and Aboriginal Medical Services to meet the strict COVID-19 guidelines, navigate the contract management process and audit Practices as part of the selection process.

Patients can make a booking by contacting their regular GP to discuss an appointment or online at www.hotdoc.com.au (search for Cobar Respiratory Clinic). The opening hours for this clinic are 9am - 1pm Mondays to Wednesdays, and 1pm - 5pm Thursdays.