Free
COVID-19 Response Kit for the Community Sector
This free, practical kit is designed to help any community sector organisation - whether they be public, private or non-government - to quickly and effectively communicate about and plan for COVID-19 with their staff and the people they support.
It includes materials developed by Amergin as well as links to a range of useful resources developed by other organisations, including the World Health Organisation (WHO), the Australian Government Department of Health and other Federal and State Government agencies.
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While we endeavour to make this information and accompanying resources as accurate and useful as possible, the COVID-19 pandemic is a dynamic and rapidly developing situation. In addition, every business is different. We encourage you to regularly refer to official advice from the Australian Government Department of Health and other federal, state and territory authorities and to critically evaluate how to best adapt this kit to your business’ needs.
Amergin’s Social Impact Consultants can help you customise this kit – call or submit a General Enquiry if you need support.
- What is COVID-19?
- Organisational Planning and Response
- Communication is Key
- Staff Support
- Further Information
What is COVID-19?
Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) is a new respiratory virus first detected in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that cause respiratory infections, ranging from the common cold to more serious diseases.
The majority of COVID-19 cases result in mild symptoms such as fever, cough and shortness of breath. However, it can lead to death, particularly in people who are older or who have suppressed immune systems or pre-existing conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
COVID-19 has been rapidly spreading around the world since December 2019. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak a pandemic and Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC).
Efforts to contain the outbreak include social distancing, good hygiene and cleaning practices, quarantine and self-isolation. Governments around the world and in Australia are also enacting broader lockdowns of non-essential services. All of these measures have implications for the safety and wellbeing of vulnerable people and continuity of supports provided to them by community sector organisations.
This COVID-19 Response Kit can be adapted and tailored by any community service organisation and comprises the following sections:
- Organisational Planning and Response
- Communication is Key
- Staff Support
- More information about COVID-19
Please ensure you thoroughly review the templates provided and tailor them to your business’ circumstances.
Organisational Planning and Response
Planning is everything when it comes to responding effectively to a worldwide crisis like a pandemic, particularly when you support people who are already vulnerable. We recommend establishing a COVID-19 Response Team (CRT) in your organisation that is responsible for supporting your business’ planning and response. They can use the following practical resources to assist them.
- COVID-19 Response and Business Continuity Plan – This template provides detailed guidance and examples to help your CRT develop its own plan quickly.
- Client and Service Prioritisation Matrix – This Matrix will help you to prioritise essential service delivery to clients most in need.
- Guidance on Preparing for and Responding to COVID-19 in your Business – This guidance is based on a recent Amerginhub article we published and provides general information about infection control as well as information and links to resources related specifically to COVID-19 infection control.
- Infection Control Policy and Procedure Template – If you haven’t already got an Infection Control Policy and Procedure in place in your organisation – you need one! Adapt this template to give your staff consistent guidance in infection control.
Communication is Key
Uncertainty and anxiety caused by COVID-19 can be allayed by communicating calmly, clearly and consistently with your staff, clients and other stakeholders.
Thankfully, you don’t need to reinvent the wheel – a range of quality information resources are already available. Combining these with your own tailored communications (using the templates we’ve provided) will help you distribute accurate and clear information about COVID-19 quickly and easily.
Communication Templates
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Initial email for staff about COVID-19 and your business’ response – You may wish to divide the information in this email into separate communications and/or use it as a basis for other types of communications and future updates you provide. The email refers to the following attachment:
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Initial email for clients about COVID-19 and your business’ response – You may wish to divide the information in this email up into separate communications and/or use it as a basis for other types of communications and future updates you provide. The email refers to the following attachments:
- COVID-19 Social Media guidance
Existing Resources
- A range of videos, posters and fact sheets have been published by the Australian Government Department of Health (in English and other spoken languages), including for its National COVID-19 Campaign ‘Help Stop the Spread’.
- The National Disability Insurance Agency has published information in Easy English and a number of other languages, including Auslan. Easy English information is also available from the Growing Space and the Council for Intellectual Disability and Every Australian Counts has curated a comprehensive collection of resources in a wide range of accessible formats.
- The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission have established a regularly updated page with Guidance Resources, Information, Videos and other support for all types of Aged Care providers. The Department of Health also provide up-to-date and authoritative information advice on COVID-19 for the health and aged care sector.
- The World Health Organisation (WHO)‘s public advice resources include vidoes, posters and shareable graphics, including advice for workplaces and healthworkers as well as COVID-19 myth-busters.
- In addition to detailed written information and videos, healthdirect provides a How to Avoid Infection Infographic that you can also embed on your own website.
Infographic courtesy of healthdirect.
Staff Support
Your staff are at the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic. They have their own fears and anxieties about the welfare of themselves and their families and are also supporting people who are vulnerable and anxious. Keeping your staff informed with clear concise information is key, so in addition to the above communication resources, the following fact sheets and training resources may also assist.
Templates
- Staff Fact Sheet: Supporting clients or others who are anxious about COVID-19
- Staff Fact Sheet: How to interact safely with people who may be infected with COVID 19
Training
- The Australian Government Department of Health has created a COVID-19 Learner Portal designed for care workers across all health and care settings. Courses include Infection Control Training – COVID-19, Outbreak Management Procedures, Personal Protective Equipment, Cleaning, Laundry and many other modules updated regularly. Staff supporting vulnerable people can access these FREE OF CHARGE and a Certificate of Completion can be printed/downloaded at the end of each course.
- The WHO has a number of publicly available online training modules, including Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) for novel coronavirus (COVID-19).
- National Disability Services (NDS) has discounted its Infection Prevention and Control course.
COVID-19 Symptom Checker
- If a staff member, or a person they care for, is exhibiting symptoms of illness, they can use healthdirect’s Symptom Checker to determine whether it’s possible they have come in contact with the COVID-19 virus. The Symptom Checker also provides clear guidance on the steps the person should take based on the types of symptoms they have.
Further Information
In addition to the Australian Government Department of Health (www.health.gov.au) the following agencies provide a range of information about COVID-19.
National Helpline
The Australian Government has established a National Coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 that provides callers with information about COVID-19.
healthdirect
Detailed information about COVID-19 and how the virus spreads is available at healthdirect.
State Government Health Departments
Queensland | New South Wales | Victoria | Western Australia | Tasmania | Australian Capital Territory | Northern Territory | South Australia
Public Health Units
Should you need advice or response support at a local level, you can contact your local state or territory government Public Health Unit.
These are:
- Queensland – the Department of Health has a number of local Public Health Units
- New South Wales – the Department of Health has a number of local Public Health Units
- Victoria – phone the Department of Health and Human Services on 1800 675 398
- Western Australia – WA – the Department of Health has a number of local Public Health Units
- Tasmania – phone the Tasmanian Public Health Hotline 1800 671 738
- Australian Capital Territory – phone the ACT Communicable Disease Control team on (02) 5124 9213 during business hours or (02) 9962 4155 after hours
- Northern Territory – phone the Department of Health’s Public Health Unit on 08 8922 8044
- South Australia – Phone the Department of Health’s Communicable Disease Control Branch on 1300 232 272
We value your feedback. This resource will be continually reviewed and updated to ensure it remains accurate and appropriate for the use of community service organisations. If you have any feedback on how we can improve this resource, we’d love to hear from you, so please get in touch.
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