Chief medical officer John Elock said GV health had not seen any suspected cases of the disease, but was suitably prepared.
“While GV Health has not had anyone present who is suspected of having coronavirus, the health service has plans in place if anyone should present at any of GV Health’s campuses with any symptoms relating to coronavirus,” Dr Elcock said.
“If there is a need to come to the emergency department, please phone GV Health beforehand so staff can give you a face mask before entering the health facility.”
He said while there had been no cases of person to person spread in Australia, people should seek medical help immediately if they developed symptoms of fever, difficulty breathing, cough, sore throat or rash within 14 days of travel to Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, or an area with evidence of an outbreak, or have had contact with a confirmed case.
He also said the Department of Health and Human Services had sent an alert to all health services in Victoria providing advice about the symptoms.
The department has set up an information line for the public and medical practitioners, 1800 675 398, and more information can be found at their website.
Novel coronavirus was first identified in Wuhan City and has infected more than 7 700 people worldwide, most of them in China, where more than 170 have died.
Australia had seven confirmed cases at the time of publication, with two in Victoria.
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