I Don't Have Covid-19 FAQ

Stomach upsets, rashes, migraines… There are lots of things that you and your loved ones might need medical advice or treatment for that aren’t related to Covid-19.

If you’re not quite sure if your symptoms are related or not, you can read more about Covid-19 symptoms here.

You can still contact your GP about an illness, even if it isn’t related to Covid-19. However, it is important that you ring the surgery instead of going in person. The receptionist may organise a phone or a web consultation with a GP for you. You may be charged for this consultation, but subject to your scheme you can make a claim for that cost as a laya healthcare member.

If you need help outside of regular GP opening hours, you can also ring the HSE GP Out of Hours Service.

Many GPs are experiencing a much higher workload than usual due to Covid-19, so it may be hard to get through. But as a laya healthcare member, you have a lot of other options:

• GPline – phone one of our GPs – open 24/7
• Nurseline – ring one of our nurses – open 24/7
• GPlive – web consultation with an Irish-registered doctor – open Monday to Friday (08:00am – 22:00pm), Saturday (10:00am – 20:00pm) and Sunday (10:00am – 16:00pm) (Please note: hours may be reduced during bank holiday weekends)
• Laya Healthcare Concierge – depending on your scheme, you can also talk to experienced nurses about your clinical issue – open Monday to Friday (8:00am until 17:00pm)

All of these services can offer you advice, while GPlive can prescribe you medication and send it to your pharmacy for processing and give you a medical cert, sick note or consultant referral.

GPline, Nurseline and up to a minimum of three GPlive consultations are available to all laya healthcare members at no extra cost. Access to Laya Healthcare Concierge is dependent on your insurance scheme.

If you or a loved one has a burn, a broken bone or any other minor injury, it can be difficult to know where to go. However, it’s still important to get these injuries treated safely. 

If you live near a laya health & wellbeing clinic, you can still go there to get treatment for a minor injury. You can also access any of our QuickCare approved centres for minor injuries, located nationwide – click here for your nearest centre.  Some centres may update their opening hours and restrictions due to Covid-19, so please contact the centre to find out more.   

But remember that you can’t go there if you are showing any flu symptoms such as runny nose, sinusitis, cough - which may or not be Covid-19 symptoms.

Call to make an appointment in one of the HSE Injury Units around the country. They provide x-rays, plaster casts, stitches and more. You can also choose to attend your nearest hospital A&E.

If you need emergency medical attention, you should call your GP or phone 112 or 999 immediately.

Your GP should be in a position to send your prescription to your local pharmacy. 

If that’s not an option, as a laya healthcare member, it’s easy to order a repeat prescription without a consultation for a select number of prescription types. You can order your prescription online and have it delivered to your pharmacy for processing or posted to your home with our Care On Call prescription service.

You can now attend your physiotherapist for an appointment during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, you can ring or email to see if you can get a phone or video consultation with your physio if you prefer.

As a laya healthcare member, you can also consult with a physiotherapist over the phone at no extra charge, thanks to Physioline. They can help alleviate your discomfort by giving you targeted exercises, which you can download to your smartphone. Then they’ll call you seven days later to check up on your progress.

Some appointments and day cases in hospitals are postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. If your appointment or treatment is postponed, your hospital should be in touch before you’re due to attend.

Take a look at the HSE hospital service disruptions to see how your local hospital is affected. If you’re a private patient, check directly with your private hospital.

Whether or not you can visit your loved one in hospital depends on the hospital policy and your relationship to the patient. Hospitals around the country are changing their visitor arrangements in order to protect their patients against Covid-19.

Regardless of your local hospital guidelines, you should not visit a hospital if you are suffering any flu symptoms such as runny nose, sinusitis, cough etc which may or not be Covid-19 symptoms.

Whatever is happening in the outside world, we know how important it is for all of us to maintain our mental wellbeing. But this can be difficult when we’re more physically distant than usual.

If you are feeling stressed, worried or anxious about anything, we’re still here to look after you always. As a laya healthcare member and depending on your scheme, you can call the 24/7 Mental Wellbeing Support Programme any time of the day or night.

You can get help with:

• Counselling
• Meditation
• Financial and consumer advice
• Career guidance
• Legal issues

Wash your hands properly and often

You should wash your hands:

• after coughing or sneezing
• before and after eating
• before and after preparing food
• if you were in contact with someone who has a fever or respiratory symptoms (cough, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing)
• before and after being on public transport, if you must use it
• before and after being in a crowd (especially an indoor crowd)
• when you arrive and leave buildings including your home or anyone else's home
• if you have handled animals or animal waste
• before having a cigarette or vaping
• if your hands are dirty
• after toilet use 

Disposable gloves

Do not wear disposable gloves instead of washing your hands. The virus gets on them in the same way it gets on your hands. Also, your hands can get contaminated when you take them off.

Disposable gloves are worn in medical settings. They are not as effective in daily life.

Wearing disposable gloves can give you a false sense of security.

You might:

• sneeze or cough into the gloves - this creates a new surface for the virus to live on
• contaminate yourself when taking off the gloves or touching surfaces
• not wash your hands as often as you need to and touch your face with contaminated gloves

The HSE also has a helpful guide to maintaining your mental wellbeing during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Trying to maintain a regular routine will also benefit your mental wellbeing:

• exercise regularly
• keep regular sleep routines
• maintain a healthy and balanced diet
• stay in touch with family and friends
• avoid excess alcohol
• practice relaxation techniques such as breathing exercises
• read a book
• search for online exercise or yoga classes, concerts, religious services or guided tours
• improve your mood by doing something creative

Cloth face coverings

A cloth face covering is a material you wear that covers the nose and mouth.

Wearing a cloth face covering in public may reduce the spread of coronavirus in the community. It may help to reduce the spread of respiratory droplets from people infected with coronavirus.

Wear a cloth face covering:

• when using public transport - you have to do this by law
• when staying 2 metres apart from people is difficult - for example, in shops or shopping centres
• when visiting anyone who is more at risk from coronavirus - such as people aged 70 or over or people who are medically vulnerable
• in an enclosed indoor space with other people 

If you wear one, you should still do the important things necessary to prevent the spread of the virus.

These include:

• social distancing
• covering your mouth and nose with a tissue or your sleeve when you cough and sneeze
• washing your hands properly and often
• not touching your eyes, nose or mouth if your hands are not clean

Face coverings are not recommended for children under the age of 13, unless they are advised to by a doctor or healthcare worker. Face coverings are also not recommended for those:

• who have difficulty breathing
• who are unconscious or incapacitated
• who are unable to remove it without help
• who have special needs and who may feel upset or uncomfortable wearing the face covering

Medical face masks

Medical masks are for healthcare workers. Some workers in specific jobs also use them. They are vital supplies and are not intended for use by the public in the community. We want to try and make sure that medical face masks are kept for health care workers.

Under the current restrictions, it is recommended that you work from home unless absolutely necessary to attend in person

Do not return to your workplace if you:

• have any symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19)
• are self-isolating
• have not spoken with your employer before going back to your workplace

If you are returning to work, you need to take some precautions. Follow the advice of your employer. This is to protect you from coronavirus.

Before you return to work

Before you return to work you need to:

• complete a pre-return to work form -This form is specific to your job and is only available from your employer.
• tell your employer about any circumstances related to coronavirus they should know about
• take part in any training your employer provides

If you are at higher risk of coronavirus you should work from home. If you cannot work from home, talk to your GP or your employer.

Your employer may wish to get occupational health advice.

If you get symptoms at work

Tell your manager immediately. Your employer will have a process in place. Follow their guidelines and advice.

You will need to:

• isolate immediately from other staff
• wear a face mask if one is available
• keep a distance of least 2 metres from others
• phone your GP to arrange a test for coronavirus

All passengers arriving into Ireland must have a negative or ‘not detected’ COVID test (PCR test) taken no more than 72 hours before arrival into Ireland.

Social distancing is important to help slow the spread of coronavirus. It does this by minimising contact between potentially infected individuals and healthy individuals.

You should:

• keep a space of 2 metres (6.5 feet) between you and other people
• avoid communal sleeping areas
• avoid any crowded places
• not shake hands or make close contact with other people, if possible

Children may also play a big role in spreading the virus. That’s why they should stay away from at-risk groups, such as people over the age of 60. This is because older people, or people in at risk groups, might have a harder time fighting the virus.

Encourage your children to wash their hands regularly and properly.