Winter is coming.
Sensing a potential defeat at the hands of the Seven Kingdoms of Infection Control (masks, sanitiser, distancing, Pfizer, Moderna, Astra Zeneca and Novavax), the creepy White Walker ringleader COVID-19 has had to rethink its strategy. Amassing a prodigious army of Omicron wasn’t enough. It’s decided to resurrect the armies of the past: influenza, parainfluenza, RSV and picornavirus, even little ol’ rhinovirus, to create a great winter army of undead viruses.
To make matters a little more complicated, COVID-19 has also invited an international ally, Japanese encephalitis, to fight alongside it, currently setting up camp in the north of the state.
Jon CHO, the Seven Kingdoms key strategist, is not amused.
What can a Victorian GP do to defend the realm? Here are some key weapons to put in your war chest:
- Vaccinate everyone you can against influenza. We know Victorians are a bit sick of vaccination, but this is so important. The undead flu virus may well be a total doozy.
- Be up to date with guidelines on antiviral use in both COVID-eligible and high-risk flu patients.
- Remind your patients how to use rapid antigen tests (RATs) effectively: if you’re symptomatic and get a positive RAT result, you’ve got COVID; if you’re asymptomatic and get a negative RAT result, you don’t have COVID; if you’re symptomatic with a negative RAT, or asymptomatic with a positive RAT, you must get a PCR – so, so important.
- Use the GP respiratory clinics! If they’re underutilised, we’ll lose them.
- Learn about Japanese encephalitis. It’s time to go back to adding travel histories to our usual history-taking and talking mosquito safety.
- Tune into the RACGP Victoria and Victorian Department of Health public health webinars.
These six things will have a big impact on Victoria’s winter experience this year and protect our most vulnerable patients.
Dr Anita Muñoz
Chair, Victoria Faculty