Plan to free up Victorian hospital beds for coronavirus
Space in public hospitals may be freed up for coronavirus patients by shifting elective surgeries to private hospitals if an outbreak of the deadly disease hits Victoria.
VIC News
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Elective surgeries could be cancelled or shifted to private hospitals if public hospital beds were needed to tackle a coronavirus outbreak in Victoria.
The state government has been in talks with private hospitals on emergency plans to free up space in public hospitals if the disease spreads here.
Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said a range of contingency options were being considered, including dedicated respiratory clinics to prevent emergency departments from being “overrun with patients”.
Health chiefs, and state and federal ministers met in Melbourne on Friday to co-ordinate their response to the virus, which has so far killed 2814 people worldwide.
Since the federal government activated its pandemic emergency response plan on Thursday, the spread of the virus has increased from 42 countries outside China to 49 and 82,704 cases have now been confirmed.
Chief Medical Officer Brendan Murphy said there was a “very strong likelihood” more cases would be diagnosed in Australia but there was currently no evidence of “community transmission” here.
He urged people not to waste face masks, as authorities stockpiled resources.
“Whilst we are preparing and we’re realistic about what might come in future weeks, we’re not in a situation where anyone needs to be concerned,” Professor Murphy said yesterday.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the Commonwealth would direct planning for the nation’s aged-care system as elderly people were most vulnerable to the virus.
The average age of those killed so far is about 71.
Mr Hunt said “rings of containment” were being considered in which patients would initially be isolated in hospitals and then in nursing homes if the situation worsened.
“Alternative arrangements” would be considered in the event of a broader outbreak.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly played down reports that almost everyone could eventually contract the virus, but said authorities were planning for several scenarios, including that it continued through winter “like the common cold or a flu virus”.
Professor Murphy said about 80 per cent of people diagnosed with coronavirus so far had experienced a “very, very mild disease”, and it was “very unusual” that few children had been sick.
Ms Mikakos said the government was not ruling anything in or out in its plans, and would consider whether schools needed to be shut if the situation worsened.
“The risk to children has been a very low one,” she said. “Of course we need to respond to the situation as it arises.”
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