I understand this, but in many ways this event is the defining phenomenon of our generation, and it deserves careful consideration and reflection.

As I write, metropolitan Melbourne is in stage four lockdown, while regional Victorians are enduring stage three restrictions.

Sydney-based physiotherapist Karl Schurr and his partner Annie McCluskey, an occupational therapist and Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Sydney, were sailing to Antarctica as passengers on the cruise ship Greg Mortimer when the nightmare began.

On 21 March, after only seven days on board, passengers started developing symptoms that we now recognise as COVID-19.

Physiotherapists are there when patients with COVID-19 need acute care, and they’re there when survivors need rehabilitation for ongoing symptoms. Zachary Attard and Meredith King answer some questions about physiotherapy management in the acute hospital and community settings, respectively. 

Acute ward management for COVID-19

What has your role been in the management of COVID-19?

I have acted as the physiotherapist on the COVID- dedicated ward at Austin Health in Melbourne.

COVID-19 continues to challenge us as individuals and across families, teams, organisations, villages, states and countries.

Alongside this, the APA continues to pursue the best available information to propel our strategy.

Using information strategically to better respond to our consumers’ needs remains key to our profession thriving and surviving.

By the time this issue of InMotion goes to press, Melbourne will be in its first week of a six-week State of Emergency. It seems that many parts of the world are enduring second waves of this collective nemesis, never having quite recovered from the first wave.

Despite the significant knowledge you hold that could assist this client’s recovery, you can certainly be forgiven for not recognising that they had IH or even knowing anything about the condition.

This has been a year of monumental challenges for business owners and workers across Australia as they seek to manage the impacts of COVID-19 on their practices.

Our members in these areas have been justifiably anxious, angry and exhausted.

It is clear that the battle is still ahead of us, and there is no short-term relief from this pandemic in Australia any time soon. It has been a strong reminder of how vulnerable we are as a nation to this virus, and that we need to continue to support each other across state borders.