(Photo/Australians website screenshot)
The Commonwealth announced on government 11 a $2.4 billion comprehensive health care programme to protect all Australians, including the elderly, patients with slow venereal disease and vulnerable groups such as Aboriginal communities from the new crown virus.
The programme provides unprecedented support in primary health care, old-age care, hospitals, research and national health reserves, as reported on the website of the Australian newspaper and the Prime Minister`s Office. Prime Minister Morrison (Scott Morrison) said government would ensure that Australia`s health system is well prepared and has the resources needed to fight the new crown virus and protect the community. "The $2.4 billion assistance will prepare us as well as any other country in the world, and the plan will prevent and treat the new coronavirus in the coming weeks ," he said. our government and national leading medical experts are working day and night to ensure that we have the right tools, information and resources to ensure the safety of australians. The Federal Health minister, Hunt (Greg Hunt), said that government was improving the capacity of the health system to effectively assess, diagnose and treat new coronavirus patients in a way that minimizes the spread of disease in the community. "We are ensuring that people have access to basic care to reduce their potential risk of infection. This includes support for telemedicine, primary health care and medical supplies. "
Specific elements of the plan include:
- Fever clinics :100 new fever clinics equipped with doctors, nurse. first aid and observation equipment, in the next 6 months, each clinic can receive 75 people per day, the establishment of fever clinics will prevent patients with mild new crown lung inflammation to visit the hospital, resulting in cross-infection.
- Primary care :$100 million will be used to provide a new health care service for those who are isolated or self-isolated from home due to a new coronavirus infection. From March 13, people can receive health counseling by telephone or video such as FaceTime or Skype. These telemedicine counselling services will be provided by doctors, general practitioners, experts, nurse and mental health workers, and medical insurance reimbursement can also be used by older persons over 70 years of age, persons with chronic diseases, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people over 50 years of age, persons with low immunity, pregnant mothers and new parents. government will provide $25 million to fund family drug services to enable patients to fill out PBS prescriptions online or remotely and deliver drugs to their homes. to support general practitioners and pharmacies, government will provide $5 million to quickly promote the use of electronic prescriptions in australia. Patients have access to services through general practitioners, telemedicine, national hotlines, state hotlines, specialized respiratory clinics and hospitals. The national separate consultation telephone line will increase the fund of 50.7 million yuan to provide consultation services to patients all the time. The free hotline will provide patients with the best treatment plan according to their symptoms and risks. Medical staff will direct people to the nearest hospital or fever clinic, or advise them to stay at home for self-monitoring or contact their family doctor.
- government will invest 206.7 million yuan to provide services for up to 100 specialized fever clinics. The Primary Health Network will coordinate with the Australian Medical Council (AMA), the Royal Australian General Practitioners Board (RACGP) and states and territories to identify needs. These clinics will provide a one-stop service for those who fear they may be infected with the virus, who will be tested and isolated from other patients. government will establish specialized medical insurance funding and batch pathology testing for the new crown virus. It is expected to cost 170.2 million yuan, and patients will also receive new coronavirus and influenza tests at the same time.
- Geriatric care :$110.2 million is funded to educate and train geriatric care workers in infection control and to enable geriatric care institutions to employ additional nurse and geriatric care workers for residential and home care. The Committee on Quality and Safety of Care for the Elderly will receive additional funding to work with medical institutions to improve infection control.
- Hospitals: government provide 500 million yuan of funds to the states and regions. federal government will cover half of the additional costs incurred by all states and territories in the diagnosis and treatment of new crown pneumonia or suspected patients and will strive to minimize virus transmission.
- Research: government will allocate $30 million from the Medical Research Future Fund for vaccine 、 antiviral and respiratory medicine research. And that will put Australian researchers at the forefront of developing treatments and vaccine.
- medical equipment: the government will ensure that australia has adequate medicines, masks and other personal protective equipment, and the $1.1 billion fund will ensure that patients and important staff have masks and other protective equipment, such as surgical clothing, goggles and hand sanitizers for health professionals. The funds will also be used to purchase antibiotics and antiviral drugs for the national medical reserve, so that patients with secondary rehabilitation can receive rapid treatment.
- Communication: government invested 30 million yuan to carry out a national publicity campaign through TV, radio, print and digital platforms to provide practical advice to the public on how to play a role in controlling the virus and maintaining health. And the campaign will provide up-to-date clinical guidance, sorting and patient care, developing an application, and building councillor for their own safety. The information will be based on the latest medical advice and will be published in up to 20 languages.
