WellSouth PHO chief executive officer Andrew Swanson-Dobbs said medical practice staff from both areas met the Southern District Health Board last night to review their plans for Covid-19 management.
Yesterday, Wanaka Medical and Aspiring Medical centres released a joint statement in which they said both centres were working closely together on a joint local initiative with the Southern District Health Board and Ministry of Health in an effort to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the local community.
"As an interim step, we have set up a combined, dedicated team and facility to respond to any suspected Covid-19 cases, which will function outside our normal practice operations until the Ministry of Health has established Community Based Assessment Centres (CBAC),” Aspiring Medical general manager Caroline Stark said.
"All patients are being screened via phone and online portal bookings and again when they arrive for their appointments."
Both practices were offering, where appropriate, alternatives to face-to-face consultations such as phone and virtual consultations and were taking steps to ensure patients could access their usual medical care without unnecessary exposure to potential Covid-19 cases, she said.
Wanaka Medical general manager Michael James said they were now asking patients not to come to the practices without an appointment, including urgent weekend clinics.
"If patients have a sore throat, cough, shortness of breath or fevers and have travelled overseas in the last 14 days or been exposed to a known or suspected case, then we’re asking them to stay at home and use their phone.”
Aspiring Medical and Wanaka Medical were also focusing on reducing the possibility of concurrent outbreaks of coronavirus and influenza.
A limited number of influenza vaccines were expected to arrive in the next week and high-risk patients would receive their vaccinations first.
All other patients would be able to get their vaccinations from mid-April, Mr James said.
Although there were no confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Wanaka, both practices acknowledged it was a rapidly evolving situation.
"We will be monitoring the situation ... and should there be multiple confirmed cases in the area, we have an escalating joint pandemic plan which will be implemented as needed,” Ms Stark said.
