Earlier last month, Dr Alan penned this piece from within the confines of COVID-19 quarantine. We are happy to share that Alan and his family are well and back working and living their lives as normally as Stage 4 restrictions allow.
Continue below for a retrospective piece from Dr Alan, from his time in quarantine.
“Some may already be aware, and I am most grateful for the messages of support I have received, that my wife, my sons, and I are in quarantine, after my youngest son tested positive for COVID-19. He was a close contact of a member of the Truganina cluster and tested positive prior to symptoms.
Gratefully, he was symptomatic for only 48 hours and is now hale and hearty, as are we all. My wife and I have had a negative test, and will seek another test prior to exiting quarantine. We have not tested my eldest son as he does not leave the house, but that is another matter.
For now, we are making the best of the situation and are addressing all those long-deferred projects about our house as well as familiarising ourselves with internet grocery shopping. My wife and I are both healthcare workers and are disappointed not to be back at the coal face, but, we both wondered when the time would come when we would be compelled to withdraw, hopefully temporarily, from the battle our community faces.
We are grateful for the support we have received from our workplaces, and the wider community. We know that while we are absent, a greater load falls upon those who remain. Be assured we will be back as soon as it is safe for us to resume.
For now, I wish all my work colleagues, our clients, and the wider community good health; our most precious commodity. I have had a sample of the anxiety a parent faces when a family member is ill with this virus. I empathise with all who face the same challenge we have and understand the concerns of those contemplating the challenge to come…this battle is far from over, and the end is nowhere in sight.
‘Til we meet again…
Dr Alan Underwood
11 July, 2020”
