Rotorua Hospital (pictured) and Taupō Hospital both have negative air pressure rooms for isolating patients. Photo / File
Rotorua Hospital (pictured) and Taupō Hospital both have negative air pressure rooms for isolating patients. Photo / File
The Lakes District Health Board does not have a fully prepared and up-to-date plan on how to deal with the coronavirus.
But health officials say not to worry, the DHB has proven it is "well-equipped" to deal with any cases which pop up with previous tried and tested plans.
As of yesterdayafternoon, there were 11 people in self-isolation in the Lakes DHB area and there were no confirmed cases of coronavirus, also known as Covid-19, in New Zealand.
Toi Te Ora medical officer of health, Dr Neil de Wet, said those who are self-isolating were registered with the Ministry of Health's national teleservice.
However staff had begun updating and refining the plan with new information as it arose, he said.
Lakes District Health Board director of nursing and midwifery, Gary Lees, pictured in 2012. Photo / File
"This is a dynamic situation that requires us to think about a number of different 'what if' scenarios so that if and when we see local cases we will be in a good position to respond."
The DHB had been sharing the latest Ministry of Health information with health services such as aged residential care, pharmacists and primary care.
Aged care facilities and other contracted health service providers had their own plans in place, which the DHB understood included isolation, management and treatment.
Rotorua and Taupō Hospitals both had negative air pressure rooms for isolating patients.
Toi Te Ora medical officer of health Dr Neil de Wet. Photo / File
Toi Te Ora medical officer of health Dr Neil de Wet said the 2011 plan had a "generic response" that had been thoroughly prepared and tested during the 2009 outbreak of H1N1, also known as swine flu.
De Wet said the response plan would be modified as necessary and a significant amount of work had gone into ensuring health authorities were prepared for a coronavirus outbreak.
Medical officer of health, Dr Phil Shoemack, previously told the Rotorua Daily Post good hand hygiene and cough etiquette, together with isolating suspected cases, were the main measures to prevent the disease's spread.
A Ministry of Health spokesperson said it had an up-to-date New Zealand Influenza Pandemic Plan and maintained preparedness for a pandemic. The plan was used in 2009 to respond to the H1N1 influenza pandemic.
The National Health Co-ordination Centre was in regular contact with DHBs to ensure they were prepared to respond to cases of coronavirus in New Zealand and to provide support as required.
Pharmacies and medical suppliers feeling the pressure
Rotorua's Unichem The Mall Pharmacy pharmacist, Francis Dragicevich, noticed there was "a heightened concern" about coronavirus.
There had been an increase in people asking for face masks, hand sanitiser, and hand wipes and the store was struggling to get enough stock.
The pharmacy had sold out of air-filtering N95 masks but Dragicevich believed people were still asking for other facemasks as it was "comforting" to still wear something.
The customers asking about coronavirus and anti-viral products were generally elderly people, overseas visitors and travellers bound for international travel, particularly to Asian countries.
"People going back to places like Hong Kong are very concerned," she said.
The pharmacy referred customers to the Ministry of Health to get the most up-to-date information.
Bay of Plenty medical supplies company that bore the brunt of people "panic buying" face masks were still juggling heightened demand.
Capes said on Wednesdaydemand was still "crazy" but this had been tempered by the business posting a notice on the website about the sell-outs.
"Things only settled down when we took some items off the website, [but] we're still getting calls every 10 minutes."
He said the company received an inquiry on behalf of the World Health Organisation to send supplies to the Pacific Islands, but he had to direct the query elsewhere.
Inquiries came from New Zealanders wanting a mask to wear while travelling. Interest continued to come from Chinese-New Zealanders looking to send supplies back to family in China.
There was no indication of when the business would be back in stock.
Coronavirus symptoms - Fever, coughing and difficulty breathing. - These were similar to a range of other illnesses, including the flu, so if someone had these symptoms it did not necessarily mean they had coronavirus.
More information on coronavirus - Head to the Ministry of Health or Toi Te Ora websites for the latest information. - If you have a fever, cough or difficulty breathing please telephone Healthline (for free) on 0800 611 116.
