The Daily Telegraph today launches a campaign to support the state’s frontline health workers — our last line of defence in the war on ­coronavirus.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said it was time for “a bit of human compassion” for doctors and nurses and urged Australians to take practical measures.

“In days gone by everybody knew if you had a nurse or doctor you knew working at the local hospital and something big happened you’d offer to cook meals, look after the kids, walk the dog, take the kids to school.

“This war is potentially so challenging for health staff that we need the community to back them in every imaginable way while following distancing rules,” Mr Hazzard said.

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The Daily Telegraph is also calling for free parking for frontline health workers on the job and temporary accommodation where they would prefer not to return home after marathon shifts for fear of infecting family members.

Another proposal is for local councils to waive parking fines for health workers at their place of work during the crisis.

Police Minister David Elliott called for support for police officers on the frontline of managing isolation restrictions, revealing they were receiving terrible abuse for carrying out their orders.

“If you know a police ­officer please send them a text to say simply thank you — if you live near one please take out their garbage if you can,” he said.

It comes against a backdrop of a desperate need for a steady, reliable supply of personal protective equipment for frontline workers, a key factor in the response that every health expert raised as a concern.

It can be revealed Premier Gladys Berejiklian has tasked jobs minister Stuart Ayres with finding local manufacturers to fill global supply gaps for medical equipment and hygiene products.

The premier will announce the call-out to locals this morning.

“This is a call to arms for NSW manufacturers to look at ways to convert production lines into making items we so desperately need,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“We have the ability within NSW to meet our local demand and the government is moving to help manufacturers retool quickly to achieve this.”

They will specifically target PPE (personal protective equipment) and sanitising products with major supply issues feared in the next year.

Former AMA president and former independent MP Kerryn Phelps said a reliable supply of PPE was critical, and was a “source of anxiety for doctors”.

“We need to protect everyone. The very least we can do is have the world’s best PPE,” she said.

Dr Phelps said frontline healthcare workers also desperately wanted to see everyone in their community observing physical distancing and hygiene advice to reduce the caseload.

“There is nothing more distressing for doctors leaving frontline shifts then driving home seeing people not follow the recommendations,” she said.

Regional areas have their own unique concerns, with a need to free up defence and private plane and helicopter pilots to evacuate country patients to larger towns or city hospitals.

Deputy Premier John Barilaro said the ability to evacuate patients from the regions was critical and he saw a role for defence in that.

NSW Labor health spokesman Ryan Park said there was a need to ensure our frontline workers have access to fast testing.

“We want them to stay on the frontline and be healthy enough to be there. We should be trying to accelerate their testing results when needed,” he said.

IT’S ALL (HELPING) HANDS ON DECK

Frontline doctor Brandon Verdonk knows health care workers have contracted coronavirus overseas, and in some cases died, but he and his colleagues keep turning up for work anyway.

Dr Verdonk, 32, has been working at the coronavirus clinic at Westmead Hospital for two months and has seen and swabbed hundreds of people.

“I am certainly aware of the cases overseas,” he said. “It is important not to put your head in the sand but I am reassured by the measures we have in place and the personal protection equipment.”

He is determined not to cut corners and risk taking the infection out of the hospital and home to girlfriend Victoria.

Dr Verdonk said he had been impressed by the way all departments of the hospital had rallied together to meet the crisis. They are all now watching how the pandemic has spiked in other countries and are preparing to step up to meet that challenge here.

“We have all hands on deck and we have the resources and space to scale up our response if necessary,” he said.

But Dr Verdonk, who is originally from Canada and trained in medicine at the University of Sydney, saved his highest praise for the Australian public.

“I have been really quite impressed with the response of the people I have treated. I thought there might be more aggression but people really seem to understand that we are doing the very best we can,” he said.

SYDNEY IS WELL PREPARED

No day with the constantly-evolving coronavirus pandemic is the same for infection control co-ordinator Vicki Foxton.

“We are changing our protocols to adapt every single day,” Ms Foxton said.

As infection control co-ordinator for the new Northern Beaches Hospital, Ms Foxton is on the frontline for dealing with a COVID-19 hotspot.

“I feel we are well prepared,” she said. “We have been preparing for a pandemic since it was first reported in China.”

Ms Foxton has been training staff and seconding team members to work in the coronavirus reception clinic set up just outside the hospital. She is ready to “meet the challenge” but said the size of that task depends on us.

“How long we are in this situation truly depends on how well we obey the rules on social distancing and do what we are being asked to do,” she said.

And she offered some other non-medical advice to everyone in Australia right now. “We just need to be kind to one another. Together we can get through this,” she said.

THIS IS ONLY THE BEGINNING

He spent over a decade dealing with infectious disease epidemics and conflict and natural disasters, as he helped respond to outbreaks of measles, meningitis and malaria, mainly in Africa.

But Dr Phil Humphris is now on the frontline of a very different pandemic, and one he says could be far worse than what he saw when dealing with SARS and ebola.

Dr Humphris works at the Kildare Road Medical Centre in Blacktown, which has been testing for almost three weeks in isolation clinics set up behind the premises.

He said the clinic is conducting up to 80 assessments every day.

Last week, the centre dealt with two confirmed cases and Dr Humphris said: “I expect it will get worse in terms of the epidemic and also social and economic consequences.

“We are at the beginning and we have not been through something like this before.”

YOUR CHANCE TO SAY THANK YOU

This is your opportunity to send support to the frontline workers who are doing all they can to keep us safe during the coronavirus outbreak. Scroll down to leave your message.

As the world adapts to a new way of living while facing unprecedented restrictions, there’s one thing that has remained the same – the unwavering dedication and commitment of our healthcare workers.

Now, it’s time for us to say thanks.

Throughout the constant uncertainty while fighting the coronavirus, doctors, nurses, pathologists, direct care staff, cleaners, security and many more people across NSW are risking their lives daily to keep us safe during the outbreak.

To express your appreciation and salute our care workers as they battle difficult conditions on the frontline to halt the COVID-19 spread, leave your message of support, thanks and appreciation in the form below.