<aside> ⏱ Updated 17 October 2024
</aside>
Note: If there is a scenario you feel is not covered by this procedure or you are unclear about any aspects of this procedure, please contact your Workforce Coordinator, Care Coordinator, Care Specialist, or Line Manager.
Most recent updates:
Table of Contents
This Standard Operating Procedure is for all Five Good Friends Workers (Helpers on the Five Good Friends Platform, Employees, Casuals, and Third Party Partners).
This document aims to provide guidance on how to safely deliver services to people during the coronavirus(COVID-19) public health threat. This procedure will be regularly reviewed and updated in line with ongoing alerts, guidance, and directions from the Australian Government's Department of Health and relevant state health departments.
Workers should also review the Five Good Friends (FGF) Attending Work Guidelines for further guidance.
Australia continues to closely monitor and respond to outbreaks of COVID-19, which is a respiratory illness caused by a novel (new) coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China in December 2019 and then was subsequently identified in Australia at the end of January 2020. The World Health Organization initially characterised the outbreak of COVID-19 as a Pandemic.
Coronaviruses (COVID-19) are a large family of viruses that can cause illnesses from the common cold to more severediseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS-CoV) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS-CoV).
October 2023 statement from Australia's Chief Medical Officer, Professor Paul Kelly, on the end of the COVID-19 emergency response
COVID-19 is no longer a Communicable Disease Incident of National Significance (CDINS). While COVID-19 remains a serious threat to the health of Australians, and requires ongoing vigilance by the public and governments, state and territory health systems are well placed to manage the virus alongside other infectious diseases. A focus remains on vaccination, prevention, reducing transmission and management of serious illness, hospitalisations and death.
The latest information on COVID-19 is available on the Australian Government's Department of Health website.