For the Physiotherapists in Auckland it is absolutely acknowledged this is impacting on your practice and you more than the rest of the country.  We are very mindful of this.  We know there are loads of messages of support and thanks to you and we join in in thanking you for bearing the brunt at this point.

On the positive, if there is one, we are well prepared and able to get up to speed quickly on doing what we need to.   We know the drill as do you.  We have seen the speed in which physiotherapists have responded.

We will continue to do our absolute best to keep you updated without bombarding you with emails. Our Facebook group is active and busy so this is a good place to go for collegial support, ask questions and get advice.

This is a difficult time for physiotherapists, your patients, your family and whānau and our wider communities.

We have issued this with Physiotherapy New Zealand (PNZ) and in line with updated information from the Ministry of Health.  There are not a lot of changes – mainly around Contact Tracing App/QR Code.

The Level 2 and Level 3 Guidance is on our website.  If you have any questions/queries please let us know by email at [email protected] and we will get in touch as soon as we can.   If you wish to speak with one of the Board Professional Advisors (Maarama Davis and Damon Newrick) they are very happy to take a call from you – please contact them on +64 4 471 2610

Our Consultation flowchart for Level 3 has been designed to assist you to identify when a face to face consultation is appropriate under Level 3.  You can find it here.

We are getting lots of questions which is great – we are very happy to answer these if we can.  The Board Facebook, email and phone details are:

f:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/218367079395630
e:  [email protected]
p:  +64 4 471 2610

PNZ and the Board have commenced a FAQ sheet – this can be located here.  We will update and reissue it with commonly asked questions periodically.

The Ministry of Health developed the Āwhina app to assist people to stay up to date on the latest information relevant to the health and disability sector and receive notifications when content is added or updated.

Āwhina was developed initially to make COVID-19 information easily accessible to health workers; now they are beginning to use Āwhina for other important information. More information about the app, including download links for apple and android, is available here.

ACC are providing email updates directly with providers so it is best you contact them directly regarding any ACC enquiries. You can reach them at [email protected]

We know that this is a particularly tough time for the profession and your well-being is at the front of our minds in all of our decisions,. We hope you, your family and whānau are keeping safe and well and mostly thank you for all that you are doing.  All that you are doing is appreciated.

We want to acknowledge that physios work in such varied environments and the impact of COVID-19 touches us all in different ways.

Whether you are a physio working in aged care, community services, DHB’s or private hospitals, education and or private practice …we could go on and on, the list is huge… we will continue to stay connected with you and are continually inspired by the way you are supporting and connecting with each other.

Please do let us know if there is anything we can do to assist you.

And if you have any questions or queries about this update or any other relevant matters, give us a call on 04 471 2610 or email on [email protected], we are always happy to hear from you.

Ngā mihi and stay safe,

Janice Mueller
Chair
Physiotherapy Board

Jeanette Woltman-Black
Chief Executive
Physiotherapy Board