News

COVID-19 Update 29 May 2020 – Level 2 – CBACs Close

This entry was posted in Health promotion News on by
Portable cabin for safe assessment and swabbing of patients with respiratory symptoms

From next week we no longer have access to CBACs for assessment of respiratory infections outside of General Practice. With the current case definition all people with symptoms of sore throat, cough, runny nose, shortness of breath or loss of smell still need to have a COVID swab done and this now needs to be done through your GP.

While we are now able to book more appointments to see patients in the surgery we still need to keep people with respiratory symptoms away from others to minimise the risk of spread. This means initial contact will need to still be by phone.

If you have symptoms please phone in by 10am and you will be placed on a triage list to be contacted by a doctor or nurse. Arrangements will then be made for you to have a swab done either at the laboratory or the surgery. This is by appointment only at an afternoon clinic and not necessarily on the same day. There is no self-referral option as there was with CBACs.

To enable safe swabbing of those patients that have to be seen by a GP we have hired a portable cabin so that infectious patients are seen without entering the main surgery building. This has been equipped so that we can provide assessments and swabbing in a safe environment with appropriate PPE.

Influenza-like illness symptoms 2020 in comparison to previous 2 years

New Zealand’s swift response to COVID-19 has achieved an enviable result. Today we again have had no new cases reported and only a single active case still in the country. A benefit of the lockdown has been a much lower incidence of winter cold and ‘flu infections as shown in the graph above. Now that social contact is increasing we can expect these infections to start rising and as a result an increasing demand for swabs. This is a real pinch point for us in General Practice as we are already stretched catching up with all the issues put on hold during the lockdown and now have to take on the role provided to date by CBACs which may escalate. Please be patient and understanding if we cannot see you as promptly as you may like with non-urgent issues.

With ongoing swabbing of symptomatic people, if swab results remain negative we should see a change in the case definition and a reduction in swabbing. If swabbing starts to reveal a resurgence of COVID-19 the CBACs with need to reopen. Maintaining social distancing, strict hand hygiene, cough etiquette and staying home when sick we will minimise the risk of all virus spread and increase the chances of the best outcome.

COVID-19 Update 15 May 2020 – Level 2

This entry was posted in News and tagged colds coronavirus COVID-19 Tarawera Medical Centre on by

As a country we can feel proud of the efforts we have made and the results achieved by the level 4 and 3 restrictions. There have been significant sacrifices made but we have done far better at limiting the explosion of cases with loss of life that other countries have suffered. This link to the Financial Times show some interesting interactive graphs. We don’t want to lose those gains.

Evidence from Italy was that GP waiting rooms were a significant factor in the spread of COVID-19 which is why we closed our waiting room on Monday 23 March, even prior to the first level 3 announcement. We cannot go back to a scenario where sick people are together in the waiting room risking the spread of viral infections to each other. We will continue to expect you to use your vehicle as your personal safe waiting room as much as possible.

Prior to entering the medical centre you will be asked if you have symptoms of possible COVID-19, in order to protect staff and vulnerable patients. We are keeping a sign in sign out book of all patients entering the building to facilitate contact tracing if needed.

With level 2 we will be able to start seeing more patients in the surgery. We will still aim to manage as much as possible by phone or video consult but Reception will be able to start booking appointments again provided you do not have any risks of a viral infection. The evidence that we have suggests the incidence of COVID-19 in the community is extremely low, especially in the Eastern BOP. To have certainty and confidence around this a lot of testing will need to still be done for anyone with symptoms that could be COVID related. At present this will still be done via CBACs. We are still waiting to hear what the plans for CBACs are in level 2 (there may only be a testing station). It remains crucial that if you have any symptoms of runny nose, sore throat, cough, fever or loss of smell that you get tested and don’t just arrive unannounced at the surgery. 

Walk-in clinics remain suspended as this is a major risk of sick people congregating and spreading infection. If you would like to arrange a consultation please phone before 11:30am. Reception will then arrange an appointment if appropriate for phone/video/in person. This will, as usual, depend on availability. If things cannot be dealt with by Reception you will be placed on a “Phone Triage” list to be called by a nurse or doctor later in the day or later in the week depending on the problem. 

Phone and video consultations are allocated the same amount of time as a traditional face to face consult and charged the same. Records are viewed prior, notes, referrals, lab request and prescriptions are generated and sent after so the remote consultation is not just the time spent on the phone or video link. Consultations for ACC and WINZ certificates can still be done by phone consult. Online banking is preferred to limit contact with cash/card terminal. 

Routine nursing and screening services will be gradually reintroduced so appointments will be possible for smears, diabetes reviews and cardiovascular risk assessments. 

We have been advised to defer Driving Licence assessments until Level 1. Licences that expired after 1 January 2020 have been extended to October so there is no urgency around these at present.

Influenza vaccination is still available and we have good supplies. This is available if you come to the door and knock between 9am and 3pm. 

Breastscreen Caravan returns to Kawerau

This entry was posted in Health promotion News and tagged breast screening Kawerau mobile breast screening screening on by
photo of breast screen promotion display in the waiting room
Breastscreen display in the waiting room by Sarah

The mobile breast screening caravan is returning to Kawerau from 18 May to 12 June 2020. This will enable women to again access this important screening service without having to travel out of town.

To promote this, Sarah Morris, our artistic Health Care Assistant, installed one of her health promotion displays in the waiting room. This was prior to the COVID-19 lockdown and this post was due to be published at the end of March. The lockdown put many things on hold and it is good to see more normal screening services resuming.

For more information on the benefits of screening visit the TimeToScreen website.

COVID-19 Update 24 April 2020

This entry was posted in News on by

After 5 weeks of working with a closed waiting room we are approaching level 3 after the ANZAC holiday. This will see many people who have been on lockdown able to return to work, which is a great step forward. As an essential service we have been running fully staffed the entire time but having to do things a little differently to keep patients and staff safe and maximise the benefits of the lockdown by starving COVID-19 of hosts. 

As a community all of New Zealand can feel proud of what we have achieved in this despite the costs we have paid in loss of income, feelings of isolation in our bubbles and the inconvenience of supermarket queues. On the plus side we have had far fewer winter colds  than usual for this time of year.

As a small town community, Kawerau people have just got on with it and on the whole been very considerate of one another and the challenges we have faced. 

Of concern, though, is that people may be ignoring significant health problems. It is important to understand that the practice is open and we are dealing with all the usual day to day problems that arise. We just need to initially do it remotely but if needed we make an appointment to assess things in person. 

Please don’t delay seeking help for any medical conditions that you may develop. Some problems we can manage by remote consultation, some we will need to see you for and some may need referral to hospital. We have been doing all of this over the past 4+ weeks of lockdown and will continue to in level 3. What we don’t want to see is people who hold off on seeking help for problems until “COVID has settled down” and then find problems that should have been dealt with earlier and have become more complicated or risky by waiting. If you have a concern please contact us and we can make  plans to manage things appropriately. 

We have continued to provide influenza vaccinations and from next week these will be available for people that are not eligible for a free vaccination.

COVID-19 Update 8 April 2020. Flu vaccines. Kawerau CBAC

This entry was posted in Health promotion News on by

This week we have continued with most consultations happening virtually via telephone or video to avoid patients being in close contact and at risk of spreading illness. 

We have run further influenza vaccination clinics and are still targeting those over 65 or under 65 with chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, asthma requiring preventer treatment, renal failure as well as pregnant ladies or children with a history of respiratory conditions needing admission to hospital. We will be running another influenza vaccine clinic tomorrow Thursday 9 April from 2pm. This will be at the PathLab side of the building again.

Please queue outside the fence and don’t block the ramp. Remember to space at least 2m apart, bring a sunhat/sunscreen/umbrella and wear sleeves that can be easily lifted to expose the upper arm so that we can administer the immunisation without delay.

We had hoped to begin offering influenza vaccines to anyone who wanted them from next week but this has been pushed out to 27 April as per the Director General of Health’s briefing on Monday.

Another development is the Kawerau Pop Up Drive Thru COVID-19 Community Based Assessment Centre (CBAC) which launches tomorrow, Thursday 9 April at the the Ron Hardie Recreation Centre Car Park (111 Onslow St, Kawerau). This is a drive-thru facility, the purpose is to assess, test and manage people with potential COVID-19 symptoms. This is to allow Kawerau residents access to local COVID-19 assessment and testing.

All patients with the following symptoms are eligible to be seen at the drive-thru facility:

  • Cough
  • Shortness of Breath
  • Sore Throat
  • Runny Nose

All symptoms can be with or without fever. If you have your NHI number, please bring this with you.

Kawerau Assessment Centre will operate three times per week:

Tuesday 10am – 2pm

Thursday 10am – 2pm

Saturday 10am – 2pm

All patients are required to arrive at the drive-thru assessment centre in a vehicle, only with people within your bubble.