Friday, 1.15pm
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Coles Supermarkets in Shepparton have increased their online capacity thanks to assistance from Bendigo, Wodonga and Craigieburn stores.
A Coles spokesperson said from Friday morning there was a 630 per cent increase on the usual number of Coles Online orders being delivered to homes.
"We are pleased to let our Shepparton customers know we have increased Coles Online capacity by 350%, with the number of vans delivering orders up from two to seven thanks to support from our Wodonga, Bendigo and Craigieburn stores," the spokesperson said.
"We have also recommenced Click&Collect at our Shepparton South store.
"This will significantly reduce wait times and make it easier for customers in Shepparton to get groceries. We are grateful for our customers' patience as we worked through this solution."
Thursday, 6pm
Bendigo organisations and community groups have offered help to the Shepparton community as the city battles a coronavirus outbreak.
The City of Greater Bendigo has offered to provide staff to assist the community while Bendigo Foodshare has offered to help with food relief.
Both organisations have yet to receive a formal request for assistance but will be ready to help when asked.
Bendigo doctor Kirby White, who co-founded Gowns For Doctors, said she sent 80 reusable gowns to eight Shepparton medical clinics on Tuesday.
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The offers to help come as more than one third of the Shepparton population remained in isolation and the city's outbreak hit 50 cases.
In Victoria today, there were 80 new coronavirus cases with 39 of those in isolation during their infectious period.
Dr White said she took the pro-active step, knowing Shepparton clinics were busy testing patients for coronavirus.
"They were sent on Tuesday morning, so should arrive today. I took the liberty of thinking 'these guys are busy enough, they probably can't send an email asking for help because they're too busy," she said.
"So I Googled medical clinics in Shepparton and printed a list and started at the top.
"I specifically looked at clinics servicing the Indigenous community. One Aboriginal Co-op in Mooroopna will receive two boxes of gowns with Indigenous designs."
Dr White said her Melbourne manufacturer is creating another 150 gowns to be handed out next week.
Dr White said she was aware of the pressure Shepparton medical clinics would be under after Bendigo experienced its own outbreak last year.
"We experienced this last year when the pandemic hit Bendigo," she said. "It creates another level of complexity in performing in a medical practice with hundreds or thousands of patients potentially not being able to see their doctor.
"Every morning, I start work by looking at case numbers, exposure sites, the standard media and our closed medical groups on Facebook. There is always a lot of discussion about how our colleagues are coping.
During an appearance on Studio 10 this week, Dr White invited federal health minister Greg Hunt to the region to see how rural GPs are coping during the pandemic.
"Rural GPs need a boost in morale with pandemic fatigue and I invited him to a rural GP clinic to experience first-hand the challenges we are facing in rural communities," she said
Any medical clinic that wants a box of gowns can email gowns4doctors@gmail.com.
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