Covid patients at home get pulse oximeters, care from GPs

Covid patients being looked after at home will be given pulse oximeters to measure their oxygen levels, and GPs will be enlisted to ramp up community care.

General practitioners will join the fight to care for Covid-positive cases in the home, following concerns about patients falling through the cracks.

Of the 512 Covid deaths in NSW since the June outbreak began, at least 42 have died at home, half of whom did not know they had Covid at the time.

On Friday the federal government announced that the national Primary Health Networks (PHNs) will provide patients with  — to assist GPs responsible for supervising Covid-positive patients.

President of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners Dr Karen Price.

In addition, a new Medicare Benefits Schedule item of $25 has been added to provide support to general practices for the additional cost of treating Covid-positive patients face-to-face while maintaining safe infection prevention and controls.

“The government is rapidly updating Covid-positive care pathways in every region of Australia through collaboration between the 31 Primary Health Networks and their corresponding local hospital networks,” Health Minister Greg Hunt said.

“The care pathways will connect Covid patients with the right level of care, whether that is self-monitoring, care from a general practice or general practice respiratory clinic, or for higher risk patients, care in a hospital or a hospital in the home arrangement.”

Dr Karen Price, president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, welcomed the package of new measures, which also includes an extension of the 150 GP-led respiratory clinics to continue until June 30.

“We must be upfront about the fact that Covid-19 cases are going to spike significantly across Australia,” Dr Price said.

“GPs stand ready to help, we have the right skills and expertise to continue caring for Covid-19-positive patients in the community

“Some Covid-19-positive patients, particularly the unvaccinated, will require hospital care; however, there will be a much larger group of patients who can be adequately monitored at home as part of a triaging process, and this will take pressure off the entire public health system.

“People who test positive for Covid-19 are most likely to only experience mild symptoms and recover without requiring special treatment or hospitalisation.

“The international evidence clearly shows that these pulse oximeters are a cost-effective monitoring technology to alert the patient and GP to any deterioration so that care can be escalated if needed.”

The Saturday Telegraph has highlighted the struggling hospital-in-the-home system. The current system of monitoring Covid-positive cases in the community has seen dozens die because Covid patients can rapidly deteriorate and they may be fine in the morning and dead in the afternoon.

As the states and territories open up, it is expected more cases will be cared for in the community.

Australian Medical Association rresident Dr Omar Khorshid said he welcomed the recognition that GPs would be at the core of the response going forward as Covid becomes endemic in the community.

“The financial measures to support the cost to GPs of keeping their practices open is welcome and it is critical GPs can see patients face-to-face,” Dr Khorshid said.

“These measures will succeed or fail on how well the pathways are set up and how the GPs are integrated into the hospital care

“We need to be told right away when one of our patients tests positive to Covid-19, not days or weeks later.

“Otherwise, we will see situations unfolding where patients are forced to call ambulances and taken to already overstretched hospitals where this potentially could have been avoided.”

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