Symptoms:  cough, high temperature, shortness of breath.

If you develop symptoms of Covid-19, notify your supervisor immediately.

Isolate yourself and seek medical attention – call your doctor, your local Emergency Department or healthdirect on 1800 022 222.

What is the coronavirus disease (COVID-19)?

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is caused by a recently identified strain of coronavirus in humans.

Coronaviruses form a large family of viruses that can cause the common cold and, in rare circumstances, more serious diseases like SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) and MERS (Middle East respiratory syndrome).

This new virus used to be known as the 'novel coronavirus (2019-nCov)' and first appeared in Wuhan city in Hubei Province, China.

Cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Australia and in other countries.

What are the symptoms of COVID-19?

It's important to remember that symptoms are very similar to other illnesses that are much more common, such as cold and flu. It's very unlikely to be coronavirus if:

• You have not been in close contact with someone with confirmed coronavirus
• You have not been to a country or area with a high risk of coronavirus in the last 14 days.

Common symptoms of COVID-19 include:

• fever
• flu-like symptoms, such as coughing or sneezing
• difficulty breathing, which may develop into pneumonia
• sore throat
• fatigue

It can take up to 14 days for symptoms to show after a person has been infected.

Who is at risk

Currently, it seems the elderly, people with a chronic disease (such as diabetes, chronic lung disease, kidney failure or people who are immunocompromised) may be at a higher risk of developing a serious case of COVID-19.

If you have recently travelled to mainland China, Iran, Italy or South Korea, and have developed a fever or respiratory symptoms, use the healthdirect Symptom Checker to help you decide what to do next.

Protecting yourself, your colleagues and family

The best way to protect yourself and others is the same as you would against any respiratory infection. Practice good hygiene by:

• making sure to clean your hands thoroughly for at least 20 seconds with soap and water, or an alcohol-based hand rub
• cover your nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing with a tissue or flexed elbow
• avoid close contact with anyone with cold or flu-like symptoms
• make sure you stay home if you are sick no matter what the cause.

If you are prevented from coming to work

If you are prevented from coming to work due to self-quarantine, you need to notify your supervisor immediately. Arrangements, such as working from home, must be approved by the relevant member of the Executive Leadership Team.

Disruption to our supply chain

Procurement has been in constant contact with our regular suppliers and have increased ordering and buffer stocks to allow for any delays in shipments. A reminder that this will only be effective if staff only take what they need for normal business requirements.

The use of items such as personal protective equipment, operational clothing, toilet paper, paper towel, disinfectant wipes, hand sanitiser and cleaning chemicals are strictly limited to work requirements only.