Talking Point: Tasmania must aim for eradication

Tasmania may face the same situation as the mainland if mandatory quarantine isn’t imposed for those entering the state, writes Claremont doctor Graeme Alexander

THE COVID-19 pandemic has affected all Tasmanians.

One of the biggest impacts has been felt in general practice.

Although it was only in late January that our practice isolated our first COVID suspected patient, the following six months have felt like a lifetime.

From those initial early frustrations with a lack of protective equipment, reluctance for testing etc we have come a long way.

I will never forget the initial advice I received from Public Health to just “Treat it the same as any other virus!”

As with other natural disasters such as bushfires, general practice has quietly gone about its business with little fanfare.

We now face the current crisis with a mixture of face-to-face consultations, telehealth and carpark assessments.

These challenges are made easier for an older GP such as myself by younger GPs and staff with a better grasp of technology such as Facebook. Our challenge has also been made easier by our understanding patients. The majority of Tasmanians have been understanding.

Claremont GP Graeme Alexander talks about coronavirus. Picture: RICHARD JUPE

We have all recently been rewarded with increased freedoms.

The past few weeks have seen Tasmanians experiencing some of the lifestyle we used to enjoy.

Tasmanians have been returning in numbers to restaurants, hotels and supporting local businesses.

Happily, most still maintain good hand hygiene and social distancing. It has been rewarding to see smiling faces again, particularly the elderly and high-risk patients.

There is always the selfish few who either ignore the advice or fail to understand that this is not just an old person’s disease. I usually direct these ignorant few to Google Brazil graves for a wake-up call.

Should we relax our efforts these freedoms will soon disappear.

We will rapidly head down the same path as Victoria.

I have heard comments that our hospitals are ready for COVID-19.

I do not need to hear one more expert say that our intensive cares are ready and that we have enough ventilators.

If the COVID-19 battle is to be fought in our ICUs then we will have lost.

It is worth noting that our public hospitals are frequently full with no COVID-19 to deal with. The debate for Australia is should they go for suppression or eradication. There should be no debate in Tasmania. With our unique position it should be eradication.

One of the many advantages of being a GP is that we have a closer relationship with the public than any other occupation.

LOCKDOWNS: Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews, flanked by Health Minister Jenny Mikakos, announces coronavirus numbers yesterday. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Ian Currie

Many of our patients have voiced their opinion strongly over the past six months. I have no doubt the government has heard the public wants eradication.

I am sure the government has also heard the public are sick of people voicing their particular inconveniences with quarantine.

The whole world has found themselves unexpectedly and overwhelmingly inconvenienced.

It is frustrating to listen to the few outspoken tourist and business representatives encouraging our government to “take a few risks” and relax restrictions.

I am sure they do not have the backing of many business owners. How many businesses would survive a much longer second or third wave lockdown?

Would our coffee shops, gymnasiums, pubs to name a few survive another much longer lockdown? I do not hear Victorian business owners thanking their government for taking a few risks.

Of course, it is not just business that would benefit. It would be a massive boost to our primary and high school education system.

Our university would be able to have students return to face-to-face teaching.

Instead of fighting a battle with COVID-19 our public hospital system would be able to return to normal work.

Night after night I hear journalists excitedly quoting the unemployment figures but rarely do you see the current figures for elective surgery waiting lists.

I am reluctant to use the term elective because it always implies the surgery is not necessary.

The waiting lists have blown out to frightening numbers with no current plan to reduce them. General practice has become the hospital waiting room. Surely the choice is obvious.

The government needs to make 14-day supervised (trained) hotel quarantine compulsory for all those entering Tasmania.

If the state government and Public Health think home isolation is safe, they are deluding themselves.

I made the same comment to Public Health in early March and was told it was 100 per cent safe and I was wrong.

Two days later Tasmania’s second confirmed case of COVID-19 chose to sample Tasmania’s night-life by attending a few bars.

GPs talk to lots of Tasmanians. Patients frequently report friends, family and neighbours flouting home quarantine restrictions.

With the current outbreak on the mainland this is a disaster in waiting.

Equally it is sheer folly that if you move to Tasmania COVID testing is sometimes optional. The very people who refuse testing are obviously more likely to be positive than those who agree to testing.

Simply, we need to have supervised quarantine and test everyone entering Tasmania irrespective of their residential status or recent travel history.

To catch COVID-19 is not a crime. Anyone contracting the disease needs all the medical care, compassion and understanding we can provide.

People who are either at risk of having the disease or have the disease need to protect others. This is particularly so for our state as we have the oldest population with the highest rate of chronic disease.

So far Tasmania has managed the pandemic well. We need to continue not only with our measures of hand hygiene and social distancing but the government needs to strengthen its quarantining policy.

When the pandemic is over the state must hold an inquiry.

There should be no finger pointing. We must however look at how well prepared we were for this pandemic. We must learn from what worked and what didn’t work.

Issues such as communication between all the health sectors and the lack of on-the-ground leadership should be scrutinised.

We must be better prepared for the next pandemic.

Dr Graeme Alexander is a general practitioner in Claremont.