COVID-19 (novel coronavirus)

Testing clinics are specialist clinics to assess people who may be infected with COVID-19. These clinics help to keep people who may be contagious away from other areas of hospitals and health centres. This helps to reduce the potential spread of the virus and keeps the emergency department available for emergencies.

Testing clinics are managed by Hospital and Health Services. Click here to find your closest location, or contact your GP or local hospital.

View maps of your closest COVID-19 testing clinic here:
Bowen COVID-19 testing clinic
Whitsunday COVID-19 testing clinic
Moranbah COVID-19 testing clinic

Mackay drive-through clinic

A drive-through testing clinic is open at the Mackay Showgrounds from 8am until 11am, seven days a week.

Entry to the clinic is via Milton Street, just follow the signs.

Hospital Visitors Direction (No. 5) 

Effective from 10 July 2020 

The purpose of this Direction is to slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) and to protect the most vulnerable, by having tightened restrictions for visiting hospitals.

The restrictions on hospital visitors have been eased, with the risk of COVID-19 being balanced against the needs of patients.

• The Direction has been updated to allow up to two visitors to see a patient in hospital at any one time, for any length of time, within visiting hours. More than two visitors continue to be allowed to provide end-of-life support to a patient.
• There is no longer an age restriction on visitors.

It is recommended that you contact the hospital directly to confirm their visitation rules and visiting hours, before leaving home.

This direction replaces the former Hospital Visitors Direction (No. 4) made on 2 June 2020.

Read more here.

The hospitals interim policy will be updated shortly to reflect these changes.

Mackay Base and Proserpine hospitals have increased the amount of elective surgery. Both hospitals are preparing to resume some non-urgent surgeries and had already performed additional endoscopies.

Non urgent elective surgery was cancelled in March following a National Cabinet directive aimed at creating more capacity in public hospitals to cope with COVID-19 patients.

The health service is also working closely with its partners in private healthcare to offer additional elective surgery procedures for public patients.

We will be in contact if we have a new date for you.

To keep our staff and patients safe, you may only bring one support person to outpatient appointments across all Mackay Hospital and Health Service facilities. Please speak to our nursing staff if you have questions.

If you are unwell and have an appointment scheduled, please reply “NO” to the automated text message sent out by the hospital and we will contact you within 14 days to discuss rescheduling your appointment.

The following patients will also receive information indicating if their appointment is postponed or converted to a phone or telehealth appointment where it is medically safe to do so.

• Outpatients who have an existing non-urgent appointment
• Patients on a non-urgent waitlist
• Patients waiting for non-urgent elective surgery.

If you have a scheduled appointment, and you have not heard directly from the Mackay Hospital and Health Service, you should still attend as normal.

Click here for Outpatients Frequently Asked Questions.

Please note:

If we must reschedule your appointment you will not lose your place.

All urgent outpatient appointments will proceed, either face-to-face or virtually, and all urgent elective procedures are continuing at this time.

If your condition worsens during this period, seek advice from your GP.