The Queensland Government announced yesterday that a three-day lockdown for Greater Brisbane – including the council areas of Logan, Ipswich, Redland and Morton Bay – will run from 5pm AEST Monday 29 March to 5pm AEST Thursday 1 April. This is based on health advice and is being done in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19.
This is an emerging situation and unfortunately, little detailed information for allied health professionals is currently available. The APS is urgently seeking clarification from Queensland Health on the guidelines for psychologists.
What we know so far
All people in these areas – and anyone who has travelled there since 20 March 2021 – are to stay at home unless they need to:
- work, study or volunteer because they can’t work from home or remotely
- shop for essentials like groceries, medicine and necessary supplies
- access medical or healthcare needs, including compassionate requirements. This includes psychology services.
Allied health professionals, including psychologists, are considered essential workers and therefore may provide face to face consultations, if necessary. However the APS strongly recommends that psychologists in the locked down areas of Queensland who can offer telehealth consultations do so during this time.
The full list of permitted activities is available on the Queensland Health website.
Clients who live outside the Greater Brisbane area may travel in to attend a psychology appointment in a hospital and health service, a private health facility, or from a prescribed health practitioner or registered NDIS provider under an agreed NDIS plan. Once they return home, they must abide by the stay-at-home rules for the duration of the lockdown.
Masks
Everyone in Queensland must carry a mask at all times unless they have a lawful reason not to, and must wear a mask in certain indoor spaces, including hospitals and aged care facilities. It is strongly advised that you wear a mask outdoors when you cannot maintain a distance of 1.5 meters.
PPE guidance has been released for health workers who offer in-home services or sessions within a community health service. If you do, and have clients who are at increased risk of severe illness e.g. aged 70 and over, you are required to wear a surgical grade mask.
We are seeking further guidance on whether masks musts be worn by psychologists and their clients outside these settings.
Resources
Whilst we hope that this lockdown is not extended beyond these three days, I encourage you to access and share the many APS COVID-19 resources for practitioners and clients, including:
Psychological services via telehealth: Information for consumers
Checklist for providers using telehealth services
The APS is at its heart a community, and your colleagues across the country have many personal and professional experiences to share in this area. I encourage you to reach out to them for support.
We will be in touch with further information as soon as we receive it.