COVID-19 Information For Patients
Patient COVID-19 Appointment Information
Call on arrival. Please call when you arrive in the car park so that our staff can ask you the current Covid-19 screening questions. Please note, if you are unwell, have been to a Covid hotspot, have been asked to isolate or refuse to wear a mask you will not be able to enter the rooms. Your appointment will be made as a telehealth appointment.
Stay home if you’re unwell. If you are unwell with cold or flu symptoms, we have made arrangements for your consultations to be done via telephone or skype at this time. Please contact our rooms if you are unwell the day before your appointment and arrangements will be made for a telehealth consult.
No partners. This does not include fertility appointments as both partners are considered patients. There may be special circumstances where your partner would be allowed to come to offer support, please contact us if you feel that you may be part of this category. We are limiting people through the doors at the moment so where you can please come alone. If you would like your partner to be included in the appointment Dr Holland is allowing a video call on your phone.
No children are permitted at this time, this does not include your new born. We love kids and we're sorry we can't have them in with you. If you are not able to find child care please contact us and we will organise for you to have your consult as a telehealth appointment.
Wear a Mask. All visitors must now bring their own mask to wear while in our rooms. Our staff are currently wearing masks too.
Sign in with the QR code. Please use your phone to sign in as your enter and show reception your green tick. All people entering must sign in on entry. If you are unable to sign in on arrival please call 0249527409.
Avoid hotspots and lock down LGAs. All visitors to our rooms must avoid hotspots and lock down areas. Alternative appointment arrangements must be made for patients who have visited, transited, work or live in other lock down areas or who have been to local hotspots. To review current Covid case locations click here.
Appointment by phone or Skype (telehealth). We are now offering phone or video consults to patients who are unwell or on request. If you would prefer to have your appointment over the phone please let us know and we will organise that. Dr Holland performs video consults via Skype.
Extra cleaning. We have already made changes in rooms to keep you and our staff safe and virus free. Our staff have implemented an additional disinfection routine that continues throughout each day to clean surfaces and regularly touched surfaces.
Social distancing. We have implemented 1.5m social distancing in the waiting room and have limited our maximum number of patients waiting in consideration of the 4 square meters per person recommended for indoor venues. We are limited to eight waiting patients. If we have more than this at any given time, we may ask you to wait in your car or the outside area around our building.
Where to source reliable information
Let us start by saying there is a lot of information available to be absorbed right now, some reliable and some sensationalist. The same can be said about those who are giving their medical opinion. We are advocates of spreading calm not fear, for your own mental health we recommend that you try and do the same.
Covid-19 and Pregnancy Fact Sheet. Dr Holland has prepared a fact sheet which has been update on the 29 March 2020, based on the recommendations of the College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the Government Health Department, which is attached to this email. This fact sheet may answer many of the questions you have specifically regarding your pregnancy and the Covid-19 virus. This information is also available here.
Reliable sources. It is important to find a way to stay up to date, without exposing yourself to hype or misinformation. We are not the authority on what is correct and what is incorrect but here is a selection of sources that we find accurate:
Australian Government Health Site www.health.gov.au
Latest News & Updates https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/latest-news-and-updates
Pregnant Women's Guiedlines https://ranzcog.edu.au/statements-guidelines/covid-19-statement
News: https://www.abc.net.au/news/
Delivery Information for Newcastle private Hospital
Delivery at Newcastle Private Hospital. Please check the Newcastle Private Hospital Website for the latest information on delivery and visitor guidlines and restrictions www.newcastleprivatehospital.com.au
Dr Holland’s obstetric cover. Dr Holland is part of Newcastle Obstetrics, a group of Newcastle obstetricians who have a long-standing arrangement to care for each other’s patients in the event of annual leave, weekend roster or where the doctors become unwell. Since Covid-19 this group has been working behind the scenes to consider any scenario and have plans in place to ensure that your obstetric care continues.
Communication
We will continue to update you via email, sms, on our website and via our social media platforms for the duration of the pandemic.
These certainly are interesting times and for each person there are a range of circumstances, emotions, and questions around your pregnancy and covid-19. We want to start by re-assuring you that Dr Holland is staying up to date with the latest health advice around covid-19 and being pro-active in making any changes to your treatment and care that are advised.
Call on arrival. Please call when you arrive in the car park so that our staff can ask you the current Covid-19 screening questions. Please note, if you are unwell, have been to a Covid hotspot, have been asked to isolate or refuse to wear a mask you will not be able to enter the rooms. Your appointment will be made as a telehealth appointment.
Stay home if you’re unwell. If you are unwell with cold or flu symptoms, we have made arrangements for your consultations to be done via telephone or skype at this time. Please contact our rooms if you are unwell the day before your appointment and arrangements will be made for a telehealth consult.
No partners. This does not include fertility appointments as both partners are considered patients. There may be special circumstances where your partner would be allowed to come to offer support, please contact us if you feel that you may be part of this category. We are limiting people through the doors at the moment so where you can please come alone. If you would like your partner to be included in the appointment Dr Holland is allowing a video call on your phone.
No children are permitted at this time, this does not include your new born. We love kids and we're sorry we can't have them in with you. If you are not able to find child care please contact us and we will organise for you to have your consult as a telehealth appointment.
Wear a Mask. All visitors must now bring their own mask to wear while in our rooms. Our staff are currently wearing masks too.
Sign in with the QR code. Please use your phone to sign in as your enter and show reception your green tick. All people entering must sign in on entry. If you are unable to sign in on arrival please call 0249527409.
Avoid hotspots and lock down LGAs. All visitors to our rooms must avoid hotspots and lock down areas. Alternative appointment arrangements must be made for patients who have visited, transited, work or live in other lock down areas or who have been to local hotspots. To review current Covid case locations click here.
Appointment by phone or Skype (telehealth). We are now offering phone or video consults to patients who are unwell or on request. If you would prefer to have your appointment over the phone please let us know and we will organise that. Dr Holland performs video consults via Skype.
Extra cleaning. We have already made changes in rooms to keep you and our staff safe and virus free. Our staff have implemented an additional disinfection routine that continues throughout each day to clean surfaces and regularly touched surfaces.
Social distancing. We have implemented 1.5m social distancing in the waiting room and have limited our maximum number of patients waiting in consideration of the 4 square meters per person recommended for indoor venues. We are limited to eight waiting patients. If we have more than this at any given time, we may ask you to wait in your car or the outside area around our building.
Where to source reliable information
Let us start by saying there is a lot of information available to be absorbed right now, some reliable and some sensationalist. The same can be said about those who are giving their medical opinion. We are advocates of spreading calm not fear, for your own mental health we recommend that you try and do the same.
Covid-19 and Pregnancy Fact Sheet. Dr Holland has prepared a fact sheet which has been update on the 29 March 2020, based on the recommendations of the College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the Government Health Department, which is attached to this email. This fact sheet may answer many of the questions you have specifically regarding your pregnancy and the Covid-19 virus. This information is also available here.
Reliable sources. It is important to find a way to stay up to date, without exposing yourself to hype or misinformation. We are not the authority on what is correct and what is incorrect but here is a selection of sources that we find accurate:
Australian Government Health Site www.health.gov.au
Latest News & Updates https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/latest-news-and-updates
Pregnant Women's Guiedlines https://ranzcog.edu.au/statements-guidelines/covid-19-statement
News: https://www.abc.net.au/news/
Delivery Information for Newcastle private Hospital
Delivery at Newcastle Private Hospital. Please check the Newcastle Private Hospital Website for the latest information on delivery and visitor guidlines and restrictions www.newcastleprivatehospital.com.au
Dr Holland’s obstetric cover. Dr Holland is part of Newcastle Obstetrics, a group of Newcastle obstetricians who have a long-standing arrangement to care for each other’s patients in the event of annual leave, weekend roster or where the doctors become unwell. Since Covid-19 this group has been working behind the scenes to consider any scenario and have plans in place to ensure that your obstetric care continues.
Communication
We will continue to update you via email, sms, on our website and via our social media platforms for the duration of the pandemic.
These certainly are interesting times and for each person there are a range of circumstances, emotions, and questions around your pregnancy and covid-19. We want to start by re-assuring you that Dr Holland is staying up to date with the latest health advice around covid-19 and being pro-active in making any changes to your treatment and care that are advised.