Emergency Response

SEMPHN is participating in the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services’ State Health Emergency Response Plan.

The Plan outlines a coordinated response to emergencies, covering:

• Bushfire
• Flood
• Heatwave
• Train or plane accident
• Epidemic
• Wide-scale food poisoning

SEMPHN's support during state health emergencies

To support the Plan, Primary Health Networks will help with preparedness, response, and recovery, so that local communities have the best available primary healthcare following an emergency.

SEMPHN keeps a register of general practice staff who are willing to respond in an emergency. The register streamlines the process of coordinating services during a time when a quick response is required. 

In the event of an emergency

SEMPHN may send out an initial SMS message to health professionals who have registered to be part of the emergency response, to gauge the potential capacity of the regional response. 

Examples of response are:

• Taking on additional patients for a short period of time
• Staffing a field clinic where local infrastructure is not available
• Caring for people affected by an emergency either locally or, if required, further afield.

Get involved

If you or your practice is interested in supporting your community during an emergency, contact SEMPHN’s Provider Support team at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or call 1300 331 981 (Option 3).

Information gathered will be recorded in a secure, limited-access database, and shared with the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) for the purposes of the emergency response only.

Disaster resources for general practice

RACGP's emergency planning and response fact sheets available here.