Coronavirus: Sydney’s first dedicated respiratory clinic opens in Ryde

The Macquarie Park referral-only clinic aims to combat coronavirus by reducing its spread in the community and take the pressure off hospital’s emergency departments and local medical practices.

• 13 Sydney church attendees test positive to COVID-19
• Three more COVID-19 cases at Dorothy Henderson Lodge

Sydney’s first dedicated respiratory clinic to combat the spread of COVID-19 has opened in Ryde where a spate of community transmissions have occurred in two clusters involving a nursing home and church congregation.

Ryde Respiratory Clinic is a referral-only clinic. The purpose of the clinic is to reduce the spread of coronavirus in the community and take the pressure off hospital’s emergency departments and local medical practices. Picture: Matthew Vasilescu

Ryde Respiratory Clinic which started running this week is staffed by existing general practitioners and nurses who assess patients with mild-to-moderate respiratory symptoms including a fever, cough and shortness of breath.

Patients are tested and diagnosed for COVID-19, as well as influenza and pneumonia.

The Macquarie Park clinic, funded by the federal government, aims to reduce the spread of COVID-19, take the pressure off local emergency departments and medical practices and optimise the use of available stocks of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

Confirmed cases of COVID-19 across Sydney Metropolitan region as of 25 March 2020 at 8pm, by local health district (LHD). Source: NSW Health

It comes after the Morrison government announced the $2.4 billion National Health Plan response to the coronavirus outbreak on March 10 including the rollout of 100 clinics across Australia over four to six weeks.

The first two GP respiratory clinics opened Macquarie Park in Sydney and in Brisbane’s Morayfield on March 21 - with three more clinics set to open in the next week.

A Department of Health spokesman said the clinics were to take the pressure off public hospitals and general practices.

Ryde Respiratory Clinic which started running this week is staffed by existing general practitioners and nurses who assess patients with mild-to-moderate respiratory symptoms including a fever, cough and shortness of breath. Picture: Matthew Vasilescu

“(They) take the pressure of patients with mild to moderate respiratory symptoms off the public hospitals and other general practices, so that services remain open to people with severe disease, respiratory or otherwise, chronic diseases and injuries,” A Department of Health spokesman told The Northern District Times.

So far, the department has signed contracts with five sites, the remaining three of which are likely to open within the next week.

The respiratory clinic is not a walk-in clinic and is open for patients in the area who have been referred to by their doctors.

When asked the locations of the upcoming clinics, she said the 31 Primary Health Networks are working with local general practices and local hospital districts to identify the most “appropriate sites.”

The respiratory clinic is not a walk-in clinic and is open for patients in the area who have been referred to by their doctors.

“The clinics are currently operating by referral to ensure large queues of people do not form as we ask everyone to practise social distancing,” she said.

It is understood two more clinics will be coming to Sydney’s north in coming weeks.

A health source said, “We’re working on other sites in the northern area (of Sydney) to open two others to get reasonable coverage.”

“The northern area starts from everything north of the bridge including North Sydney, Ryde and up to Wisemans Ferry. We’ve got one million residents,” he said.

To date, there were at least 33 confirmed cases in Ryde. There have been two coronavirus clusters in Ryde; stemming from transmissions at Dorothy Henderson Lodge starting from February 24. NSW Health initially reported 19 had been infected in this cluster but this was altered to a 10-20 range on Friday.

A second cluster started at a church service held at Ryde Civic Centre on March 8 where initially four people tested positive including the evangelist. There are now at least 15 infections from this second cluster.

The clinic was jointly opened by the Department of Health, Wise Specialist Emergency Clinic, MQ Health and Northern Sydney Primary Health Network.

How clinic locations are decided and funded?

• Clinics will be established in dedicated premises which meet clear criteria with arrangements to safely manage infection control
• They will complement efforts of state and territory clinics at public hospitals and be in a mix of urban, regional and rural settings
• The Primary Health Networks (PHNs) will work with the AMA and the RACGP to identify practices capable of managing the appropriate infection control arrangements
• Each PHN will be provided with $300,000 to assist in identifying and establishing sites and to continue assisting with distribution of PPE.
• Flexible funding will be available to support the setup of dedicated clinics or hybrid clinics; Dedicated respiratory clinics receive setup funding of up to $150,000. Smaller clinics may be established as part of continuing practices through mechanisms such as dedicated entrance or wings, isolation controls, and other innovative models subject to verification of safety and standards.

Source: Fact Sheet Coronavirus (COVID-19) National Health Plan, Australian Government Department of Health