Essential health services

The following is classified as essential health services. 

• emergency surgery, procedures and medical consulting undertaken for the investigation, diagnosis and management of conditions where failure to do so expediently and safely will lead to the following outcomes: 

1. • loss of life; or 
   • loss of limb; or 
   • permanent disability; or 

• non-emergency but urgent surgery, procedures and medical consulting undertaken for the investigation, diagnosis and management of conditions where failure to do so in a clinically appropriate timeframe will lead to a predictable and evidence based outcome as follows: 

1. • loss of life where appropriate health intervention would otherwise have prevented this; or 
   • permanent disability where appropriate health intervention would otherwise have prevented this; or 
   • where clinical evidence supports an increased risk of a type referred to in paragraph (a) or (b) should appropriate health intervention be significantly delayed; or 

• any health services provided in a hospital; or 
• any health services provided by a general practitioner; or 
• any health services provided at a hospital radiology service (other than routine screening services); or 
• procedures and surgical treatment undertaken by dentists in authorised public health care centres in the management of: 

1. • patients with obvious facial swelling due to infection i.e. vestibular swelling (no trismus), facial swelling (with trismus); or 
   • facial trauma; or 
   • severe unrelenting pain; or

• procedures to complete: 
  • any cycle of IVF treatment that a patient has commenced before the commencement of the defined period; or 
  • any procedure required for the preservation of eggs for future IVF where required health treatment will render eggs non-viable; or 

• surgical termination of pregnancy; or 
• drug and alcohol services; or 
• the following allied health services: 
  • allied health services provided by allied health professionals working as essential workers in hospitals or in residential care facilities providing critical clinical care or as directed by the hospital; or 
  • allied health services provided by allied health professionals working in private practice providing care through telehealth and other virtual care options; or 
  • students, medical/nursing/midwifery/allied health on placement providing essential care in hospitals or in residential care facilities, or through telehealth; or 

• the conduct of human medical research trials; or 
• the following mental health services: 

1. • the hospital emergency or inpatient psychiatric services; or 
   • allied health professionals providing mental health services in hospital; or 
   • private consultant psychiatry practice by telehealth or by face-to-face (but only in the instance of emergency clinical care for potentially life-threatening situations where telehealth is not clinically appropriate); or 
   • allied health professionals providing mental health services in community settings by telehealth or by face-to-face (but only in the instance of emergency clinical care for potentially life-threatening situations where telehealth is not clinically appropriate), 

• but does not include: 

1. •  cosmetic surgery, or other procedures not addressing significant medical conditions or elective surgery. 

Page reviewed 1 February 2021 

COVID-19 

Visit the WA COVID-19 information home page 

Provided by 

Department of the Premier and Cabinet > COVID Communications 

Contact 

Telephone: 

13COVID (13 26843) 

Link to whole page: https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/covid-communications/covid-19-coronavirus-essential-workers