AMA (NSW) President: employers and schools, please don’t ask staff and students to go to the GP unnecessarily
March 13, 2020AMA (NSW) President: it’s past time for a plan on personal protective equipment
March 25, 2020AMA (NSW) President, Dr Kean-Seng Lim, is asking people to stay at home, if they can, to prevent the transmission of the novel coronavirus.
“The novel coronavirus is something we need to take seriously but not panic or be complacent about.
“That said, we are at a stage now where we need to be doing everything we can to slow the transmission of this highly contagious virus.
“So, with that in mind, if you can stay home, please stay home.
“As doctors, it’s distressing to still see people undertaking non-essential recreational activities.
“The time for that is passed – it’s time to stay home.
“For those of you who can work from home, I would highly encourage it.
“AMA (NSW) has most staff working remotely and we want more organisations doing the same.
“The more people who practise the physical distancing that has been requested, the slower the virus will spread, and there will be less overall risk for health workers like me, who have to go to work.
“This is especially important if you are in an at-risk group or have close contact with people in an at-risk group.
“If you’re feeling sick, don’t visit elderly relatives, for instance.
“If you have been asked to self-isolate or otherwise meet criteria for self-isolation because of risk of infection with COVID-19, then you definitely need to stay home.
“We’re starting to see the release of self-management tools provided by government for people worried they might have COVID-19.
“Health Direct has released a symptom checker for the disease and NSW Health has provided an app [on iPhone or Android] to keep the public in the loop.
“Please use this information that’s being provided to help you make the best use of the health system, as we expect demand to rapidly increase very soon.
“This is a pandemic, the new coronavirus is highly contagious and potentially deadly, particularly for older people.
“We all need to be taking this seriously – responsibility belongs to everyone to stop the spread of COVID-19,” Dr Lim said.
Media contact: Lachlan Jones 0419 402 955