WA doctor surgeries introduce protocols for patients unvaccinated against COVID-19

As announced by the state government on January 31, mandatory COVID-19 vaccination came into affect in Western Australia, restricting unvaccinated people from attending various venues and events to help prevent the spread.

While visitors to hospitals and aged care facilities aged 16 and over are required to be vaccinated against COVID-19, doctors surgery patients and their families are not part of the mandate.

However some doctor surgeries have begun introducing their own protocols, such as doctors wearing additional PPE and requesting unvaccinated patients to book the last appointment of the day to protect other patients.

A Bunbury resident, who wished to remain anonymous, recently reached out to the Mail to share her experience visiting her private GP in Perth as an unvaccinated patient.

"I have been visiting this GP for almost 12 years and have never had any issues" the resident said.

"I had booked my appointment online, selected 'no' for any symptoms of COVID-19, checked in upon arrival using the SafeWA app and wore a mask.

"But then the receptionist asked me if I was vaccinated, and because I am not I was immediately asked to wait outside."

Having not seen any communication online or in the doctor surgery, the woman proceeded to wait outside, at 12pm on an almost 40-degree day.

She said she waited half an hour before the doctor called her phone, informing her she was required to wait until they could "find a room" to see her in, and so the doctor could dress in relevant PPE.

"There were two patients after me, who were both moved up so they wouldn't be inconvenienced with a wait.

"When I questioned the whole situation - the doctor said it had been decided across the GP to treat unvaccinated patients this way.

"I had visited the doctor the week before to get my blood taken, but because it was post January 31, the rules had all changed.

"I wasn't even allowed inside to use the toilet or get a drink of water."

Over an hour later, the woman was allowed to enter the surgery from an alternative door to the main entrance.

She said the consult room was a desk and a patient bed that had been pushed into what appeared to be the staff kitchen.

"I was dehydrated by that point and felt lightheaded from wearing a mask in the heat.

"The doctor gave me my blood work results, in between complaining about being hot in the gown, mask and face shield she had on, and then proceeded to lecture me about why I was not vaccinated against COVID-19.

"No one seemed sympathetic - and by the end of it I felt like a third class citizen because I had decided to be vaccine free."

Brecken Health Bunbury general practitioner Doctor Brenda Murrison said while some practices had begun to introduce the additional measures, Brecken Health at this stage would not be.

"There are quite a few reasons why we won't be," Dr Murrison said.

"We see a lot of children under five years old who don't even have the opportunity to get vaccinated yet, and we also understand that people have a lot of reasons as to why they aren't vaccinated, including medical.

"As case numbers increase, we will continue to follow the same triage process, where if patients are showing signs or symptoms of COVID-19 they can elect to have a telehealth appointment or a carpark consult as the first point of call."

As surgeries especially in Perth begin to introduce additional protocols to help limit the spread, Dr Murrison reminded the community to remember that doctors themselves are humans and also want to protect themselves from COVID-19.

"People often forget that doctors themselves have illnesses and can be at risk of contracting COVID-19.

"And as doctors we've all got different risk profiles - I'm comfortable seeing patients who may shown signs of COVID-19, but some doctors are not.

"There's no right or wrong in this - doctors are just trying to do their best and to care for everyone. People need to remember that."