Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) - Update 9 March 2020

Status: Active
Date issued: 9 March 2020 - (Update to Alert issued 7 March 2020)
Issued by: Adjunct Clinical Professor Brett Sutton, Chief Health Officer, Victoria
Issued to: Clinicians and the Victorian public
 
Key messages 

Cases 
• The department has confirmed four new cases of COVID-19 taking the total of cases in Victoria to 15.
• The twelfth case is a woman in her 50s, a visitor from Indonesia. She became unwell in Perth some days after arriving in Australia and flew to Melbourne from Perth on Virgin Airlines flight VA682 on Monday 2 March while symptomatic.  
• The thirteenth case is a woman in her 20’s, recently returned from a holiday in Colorado. She became unwell on 4 March, and flew home to Melbourne from Los Angeles on flight QF94, arriving 0940am, Friday 6 March. 
• The fourteenth case is a woman in her 50s who has returned from travel to Iran. She became unwell on 18 February. She flew home via Kuala Lumpur, arriving in Melbourne on flight MH149 at 9am, Friday 6 March.
• The fifteenth case is a man in his 50s who recently returned from Trinidad and Tobago travelling via Houston and San Francisco flying home to Melbourne on flight UA60, arriving 29 February. 
• All potential exposure sites are listed in the summary table below. Anyone who was at any if these sites should be aware of their health and seek medical advice if they become unwell. 
• The department will continue to contact close contacts from the relevant flights as the details become available.

Case definition
• The case definition has been updated to include testing any returned travellers from any country outside Australia with a clinically compatible illness.

Screening clinics
• Screening clinics have been established at five Melbourne hospitals - Austin Hospital, Box Hill Hospital, The Alfred Hospital, The Royal Melbourne Hospital and Monash Clayton. Patients who have symptoms compatible with COVID-19 may present to these screening clinics. 
• See the Victorian COVID-19 website for current case definition, guidance and testing recommendations https://www.dhhs.vic.gov.au/health-services-and-general-practitioners-coronavirus-disease-covid-19

Read the full alert: 2019-Coronavirus-disease (COVID-19) - Update - 9 March 2020 
 
 
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