Potential coronavirus patients are continuing to be refused testing despite following the government’s advice that anyone with mild symptoms should present to clinics.
A rise in community transmissions has led medical experts to urge anyone in certain ‘hotspots’ across Australia with cold symptoms to attend a COVID-19 clinic.
NSW Health this week singled out ten danger zones across the state, where there is concern over the number of community transmissions.
Liverpool, Blacktown, Cumberland, Westmead and Penrith have all been earmarked as potential hubs in Sydney’s west, while Waverley, Woollahra and Randwick, in the city’s east, and Ryde in the city’s north-west, are also areas of concern.
‘In those areas, we have identified cases of COVID-19 where there aren’t clear links to clusters,’ NSW Chief Health Officer Dr Kerry Chant said.
‘We want to assure ourselves that there is not broader community transmission occurring in those areas.’
But a number of people who attended clinics in these areas on Wednesday were told they were not unwell enough to be tested – leaving clinics quiet and nurses standing idle.
Potential coronavirus patients are continuing to be refused testing despite following the government’s advice that anyone with mild symptoms should present to clinics
A number of people who attended clinics in this area on Wednesday were turned away and told they were not sick enough – leaving the clinics empty and nurses and doctors standing idle
One man from Woollahra said she felt compelled to get tested after listening to the advice of NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian.
But despite thinking the process would have been streamlined, he soon gave up on the idea after being given the runaround by her doctor and then the testing clinic.
‘I said to my fiancee I should get a test as I have mild sore throat and am a bit wheezy on the chest,’ he said.
‘I drove to the pop up testing area next to Double Bay Doctors but I was turned away as it is appointment only, but they looked very quiet and no cars were queuing.’
He was given a phone number to call so her symptoms could be assessed before an appointment could be booked.
But when he called the hotline she was told her to go to her GP instead.
When he then called her GP, they told her they could not fit her in until Thursday.
In the end he gave up on trying to get a test and chose to self-isolate for a few days instead.
‘I have very, very mild symptoms, and I only felt I should get the test as the premier instructed us to do it,’ she said.
‘It’s very frustrating, people won’t jump through hoops like this just to get a test.’
NSW has had more than 2,800 confirmed coronavirus cases so far – the most of any state in Australia and more than double Victoria, which has 1,299 sufferers.
These are the suburbs in Sydney that have been identified as possible hotspots by NSW Health, because locals have tested positive to disease without any obvious links to clusters
‘Danger zones’ across Australia have been identified in areas where there have been a high number of community contractions that doctors cannot trace. Despite residents in these areas being urged to get testing for mild symptoms, some claim they are still being turned away for not being sick enough
It was a similar story for another local who was turned away from a drive-thru testing centre at Bondi Beach, despite believing he met the new criteria to be swab tested.
The man had been experiencing a runny nose and mild sore throat for a few days but only considered getting tested after the government announced testing criteria had been expanded.
During the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak in Australia, only those with severe symptoms such as shortness of breath or a high fever, or those who had returned to Australia from overseas within recent days, could be tested.
‘My housemate lost their sense of smell and went to get tested, so I thought I should do the right thing too – but when I got there they turned me away,’ the Coogee local said.
‘The nurse told me that only those with fevers or shortness of breath could be tested.
‘I pointed out that seemed to be at odds with what the government is now saying, so she said I could get the test – but there was no point putting myself through it when the result would almost certainly come back negative.’
The ‘danger zones’ flagged by health officials are areas where doctors are at a loss to trace the source where an individual contracted the virus.
There have been more than 6,400 confirmed coronavirus cases across Australia, with 63 deaths linked to the virus
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian has urged more people to get tested for coronavirus in a bid to stop anyone spreading coronavirus without realising
People were given hand sanitiser and had their temperatures checked before entering Sydney Fish Market on Friday, April 10
With all recently returned travellers having been successfully forced into quarantine and only released after a negative test, there has naturally been a significant drop in the number of cases that can be linked to overseas travellers.
As a direct result of this there has been a spike in the number of community spread cases.
Other states such as Victoria and South Australia have also recently relaxed testing protocols to allow anyone with a fever or breathing difficulties to get checked.
There are currently more than 1,200 known cases of coronavirus in Victoria, with 88 of those in the affluent Stonnington Council area alone.
Essential workers are also able to be checked more easily.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the biggest concern now is that undiagnosed cases in the community are spreading the virus without knowing.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted NSW Health for further comment.