Change of Plans this Easter for Scone

THE government has stressed the importance of not travelling for Easter saying it’s especially important people not visit regional areas.

Dr Richard Abbott explained why it is important Sconeites stay at home and forgo visitors this Easter.

Dr Richard Abbott explains why Easter in Scone needs to be different this year.

“Fortunately, we only have one confirmed case of the virus in the Scone area at the moment and we need to do all that we can to keep those cases as low as possible,” said Dr Abbott.

“While there is only one confirmed case, we need to anticipate that there may be other cases in the Shire area which have not been diagnosed and behave as if the virus is in our community,” he said.

“There is evidence across the country of community to community transmission, with no known source, which is showing that the virus is present in the broader population and we hope that those levels are low and remain low.

“The only way to ensure those levels remain low is by observing social distancing and practicing high infection control measures.

“So far this community is going well and the majority of people are conscious of protecting themselves and others in our community.

“The reason the government is stressing people should not travel to regional areas is first because we have low numbers of cases and we need to keep it that way and secondly because our health systems are designed for our population and Easter is already a time of year of high demand, without the additional burden of the virus.

“If residents stay at home this Easter in self-isolation it will help keep our numbers low.

“Many of us will also have to change our plans and not have friends and family visit.

“There are many people who have their family return home for Easter or friends who look forward to their break in the country, but at the moment each visitor presents an increased risk to our community, in an area which doesn’t have the capacity of health facilities in larger areas,” he said.

“It is a shame we won’t be able to catch up with loved ones this Easter and it does have an impact on our local tourism industry, but it is really important we protect our community for as long as we can from the virus,” Dr Richard Abbott said.