The NHS in Dudley. and Public Health England (PHE) are extremely well prepared for outbreaks of new infectious diseases. The NHS has put in place measures to ensure the safety of all patients and NHS staff while also ensuring services are available to the public as normal.
Your safety and the continued provision of the care and treatment you need is a priority for the NHS.

The safest course of action is for you to stay at home at all times and avoid face-to-face contact.  Stay indoors and avoid contact with other people as you would with the flu.
This will protect you by stopping you from coming into contact with the virus.
If, at any point, you think you have developed symptoms of coronavirus, such as:
– a new continuous cough,
– a high temperature (above 37.8 C),
– a loss of, or change to, your sense of smell or taste,
seek clinical advice using the NHS 111 online coronavirus service (https://nhs.uk/covid-19/).  If you do not have access to the internet, call NHS 111.  Do this as soon as you get symptoms.
Information for the public is available at gov.uk/coronavirus.

Like the common cold, coronavirus infection usually occurs through close contact with a person with novel coronavirus via cough and sneezes or hand contact. A person can also be infected by touching contaminated surfaces if they do not wash their hands.
Everyone is being reminded to follow Public Health England advice to:

· Always carry tissues with you and use them to catch your cough or sneeze. Then bin the tissue, and wash your hands, or use a sanitiser gel.
· Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after using public transport. Use a sanitiser gel if soap and water are not available.
· Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
· Avoid close contact with people who are unwell.

You can find the latest information and advice from Public Health England at www.gov.uk/coronavirus

Request for Med3 Certificate due to Covid-19 Self-Isolation
The Government have issued guidance that Med3 certificates are not required for those patients who are self-isolating due to Coronavirus (either because of symptoms or they live with someone who has symptoms and so cannot work).

You can obtain an Isolation note instead via the NHS 111 online website using link; https://111.nhs.uk/isolation-note/

Once a few questions are answered the isolation note will be emailed to you. If you don’t have an email you can have the note sent to a trusted friend or family member or directly to your employer. You can also use the online service to generate a note on behalf of someone else.

As a reminder employees can still self certify for the first 7 days of absence. The isolation note then provides the information that your employer requires as evidence of absence from work.

Employers then use these to follow their sickness policies in place of a Med3 certificate.