MacGyver

The border closure is only justifiable until mass deaths are not a high probability. I have been a vocal supporter of closed borders, and will continue to be a vocal supporter for the rest of this year, but once everyone has been offered a vaccine the borders will reopen. Closed borders cannot and will not be a long term solution to a disease that will be akin to seasonal flu when the population is vaccinated. The current outbreak in Melbourne should not be blamed on dual citizens exercising their right (that they have earned) to return to Australia. The issue is with a lack of purpose built, commonwealth funded and managed, quarantine facilities. The states are doing their best but hotels are not suitable for the job and ongoing outbreaks are inevitable.

The Australian economy has performed very well because of the hard borders and the resulting absence (generally speaking) of Covid onshore. It’s allowed the economy to return to pre Covid levels very quickly and up to this point, closed borders have proven to be a vote winner at state elections. The closed borders have not applied to the import and export of goods, which have seen minimal impact (and it is worth noting that Australia exports more than it imports). So the decision to close the borders up to this point is better characterised as definitely a very good decision, rather than “ definitely a very bad decision”. With the economy doing well and people feeling safe, the majority still seem to be in favour of closed borders and the prime minister has a tendency to follow the votes, so will be reluctant to make changes. As vaccination levels increase I imagine pressure will build from within, and there will be a shift towards opening up to other vaccinated countries (Uk, USA etc) on a reciprocal basis, much like the current reciprocal travel bubble with New Zealand.

The Uk vaccine rollout has been fantastic, but I struggled to confirm the above statement. I may be wrong, but all the info I could locate suggests the Uk economy is not anticipated to return to pre pandemic levels until mid 2022. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-57306596 https://www.reuters.com/world/uk/uk-economy-return-pre-covid-19-level-around-mid-2022-2021-04-13/

I previously thought I missed a lot of things about Scotland, until I spent 8 months back there and found the nostalgia didn’t match the reality. I craved things like Scottish style Chinese takeaway, but found it just made me feel sick and paled in comparison to clean, authentic Asian takeaway options in Australia. I also thought I missed various sweets and treats, but found it all a bit excessive and realised I rarely touch the stuff anyway. In the end I missed more about Australia while in Scotland, than I missed about Scotland while in Australia. I do still miss the architecture dotted around Scotland. When in Glasgow and Edinburgh I always find myself walking around looking up, as almost every building is so rich in history. London is on another level when it comes to architecture too, fantastic place to wander around. But in all honesty, after living there for a while you take it for granted and stop noticing and I found the lifestyle very unhealthy in comparison to Australia. I know that’s subjective and not intended to cause a debate of Australia vs Uk

Agreed - I think the government’s messaging on this could and should be much stronger

Cases seem to be increasing in the UK, while hospitalisation and deaths are dropping - which is exactly what should happen with an increasingly vaccinated country that hasn’t yet achieved herd immunity. The difficulty having a travel bubble with the Uk in the near future is that Covid is still spreading over there and we would be exposing our unvaccinated Australian population to high levels of risk. More urgency with the Australian vaccination program is the only road out of this, eventually.

Mr Morrison won’t rock the boat until after the federal election. If he wins, and vaccine uptake has improved significantly by that time, he may feel inclined to take a less cautious approach and start opening up the border under pressure from elements of the business community. If he calls an early election, borders will possibly start opening in the first quarter of 2022. If he doesn’t call an early election, then I’d expect it will be mid 2022 earliest. Both dependant on vaccination levels in Australia

Closing borders/isolating has worked extremely well for Australia and it's economy to this point, but I agree a timetable for reopening (even a very cautious timetable) might encourage people to get the vaccine with more urgency. I know a lot of people who are eligible, pro vaccination, and intend to get vaccinated, but who just haven't bothered to get it yet because they feel there's no rush. I think there's a messaging issue. Up to this point it's all been about keeping covid out (which I agree with and which has worked well) and the message has been to avoid exposure, wash hands, wear masks etc. But into the future we'll all be exposed to covid, every one of us, and it's then about how safe we are when the exposure comes and the message needs to shift toward that. I think there needs to be a conversation about how and when borders might open to encourage higher vaccine uptake, with incentives around the ability to travel overseas once enough people are vaccinated. That's not going to happen any time soon, but at least shifting the conversation and public perception of the issue might be a good first step.

In the past it always seemed worse when travelling east, to australia. I think I'm used to it now and dont get jet lag so much any more. Whenever I travel I try to leave at a "normal" time and arrive at the destination in the evening, exhausted and ready to sleep at the destinations "correct" sleep time. Flights leaving at 6am, where you arrive for the flight already exhausted (having been awake since 2am), then arrive at destination early morning and struggle to stay awake all day, are a recipe for disaster.

Moving across the world is stressful, moving during a global pandemic even more so. Being stuck in quarantine for two weeks is just more opportunity to experience the full range of emotions we all carried on the plane, the difference is most of us got the opportunity to dive into our new lives to alleviate some of those stresses and anxieties, whereas you're stuck with nothing to do but experience them over and over with no relief. People are right, we are all privileged to be here, but people expressing those opinions (with the best of intentions), including myself, can only understand our own world view. We can't possibly understand how hard it is to be in your position, or how much something we might perceive as trivial from the comfort of our own homes, can have a significant impact on your wellbeing when you're stuck in a strange box for two weeks having just left everything you know behind. We all have opinions and views, but all that matters is your own experience and your own perspective. You're right, you've earned the right to be here, worked hard for it and deserve it, like we all have/do. Sometimes words are written in kindness or jokingly but come across very badly. Generally people here are supportive of each other and it can be a great place to vent frustrations, anxieties and worries. It would be a shame to lose that valuable resource we all need from time to time, and it would be sad for the community to lose the opportunity to hear your stories of happiness and success when you start your new life after quarantine. I think what I'm trying to say is I'm sorry you're having a difficult time, that those feelings are valid, none of us can understand how you're feeling and our opinions really don't matter at the moment. But also, that some comments perceived as a personal attack are not intended to be. I do hope you stay on the forum and share your positive stories when you take the first steps out of quarantine into your new life. All the experiences and opinions, good and bad, positive and negative enrich this community.

Totally agree. I had considered the 'GP urgent care' service, where you can walk in or book an appointment the following day for non life threatening matters. In the end I called Health direct and they advised me to attend the emergency department immediately, which on reflection was probably unnecessary. I could have booked an appointment next day, received an x-ray and treatment and avoided adding pressure to the Emergency department while also avoiding 5 hours sitting around waiting. If there's a next time I won't call health direct as I suppose they have to err on the side of caution.

That's true, I was "seen" two minutes after walking in the door and triaged by a nurse. It was several hours later before I was taken through. I'm not complaining as I know my injury was minor, others needed quicker treatment and the staff were extremely busy, I was just curious if the wait times were standard. The staff were wonderful and I feel sorry for them given the pressures on the system they operate within. Quite topical at the moment given the poor young girl that died at Perth children's Hospital and discussions around systemic issues (rather than individual staff members) that led to it.

I agree with this and was reluctant to go myself just for an ankle injury. I called health direct for advice as didn’t want to waste anyone’s time - after describing the injury and symptoms the lovely nurse laughed and said “you’re not wasting anyone’s time if you have a fractured ankle” and directed me to attend ED. I attended Joondalup hospital and one of the nurses said they sometimes have people waiting 7 hours and she felt the bigger hospitals (eg Royal Perth Hospital) can be quicker You’re also correct, it’s been at least 15 years since I attended ED in Scotland so it isn’t a fair comparison to make.

Yeah totally agree, I expected more urgent matters to be dealt with first and felt a bit guilty being taken ahead of another patient that seemed to be struggling to breathe. I was just a bit surprised at how long the wait time was. I’ve had ‘lengthy’ waits in ED in Scotland for similar injuries, but no more than an hour or two.

Hobbling around on crutches but thankfully nothing too serious

After 9 years, I had my first experience of an Australian hospital emergency department due to an ankle injury at the weekend. The staff were wonderful and very thorough, but the wait time was over 5 hours!! Is such a long wait time normal for non critical injuries such as this? I hadn’t intended to go but Health direct told me to go to ED immediately after their phone assessment. Up to this point I have elected not to get private health insurance, preferring to pay my money (via the levy etc) to contribute to the public health system instead of a private health insurance companies profits. Is there any scenario where private health care would make a difference to emergency department wait times?

Does this apply to you?: I think the two options are to try and secure a flight with a different airline, or delay (if this doesn't impact your visa) until mid 2022 when their might (emphasis on might) be slightly looser border arrangements. Personally I'd try to move as soon as possible with any airline that's flying, given the uncertainty around borders throughout 2022, covid variants and a very slow vaccine uptake by the Australian public.

Due to the nature of my work I've spent a lot of hours in and out of houses in the "worst" and "most dangerous" areas in WA and Scotland. The presenting issues, violence and drug use are very similar and one isn't better or worse than the other. My experience (which is subjective of course) is that drug use was far more pronounced in Scotland, but the type of drug use in Perth (Meth) makes it more noticeable for some people who might have walked past multiple heroin users in the UK and not have noticed. I've seen significantly more violence in Scotland than I have ever seen in Perth, and feel significantly safer wandering the streets at night in Perth than I did in Glasgow. Yes there are areas to avoid at night, but a bit of common sense in both places keeps you safe. If youre out drinking until 4am in busy areas you will see and/or experiecne violence in both places due to the evil of alcohol (I drink myself but it really is a foul poison on society). Drugs and alcohol are everywhere and the effects of them are felt everywhere, sadly.

I would support Australia against England every day of the week.

If you don’t mind me asking, what is it that’s making you feel guilty and how is it connected to Covid? For some, missing home is a very deep and strong desire to live in the place they grew up. But I think sometimes when we miss home it can also be nostalgia for the past rather than missing the way things are now. Closed borders can contribute to homesickness as we know we can’t jump on a plane whenever we need to, and not having a choice somehow makes it worse. Even I have felt homesick recently and I couldn’t get out of Scotland quick enough after returning a few years ago. If I was in your shoes I would consider hanging on for citizenship and take a long holiday to the UK whenever that becomes possible in 2022. Spend long enough to get past the holiday phase and into the period where people stop dropping everything to see you and go back to normal life. When it drifts into the normal Monday to Friday 9-5, the 2 weeks holiday is over and friends and family resume their lives, that’s when you start to get a feel for what real life might be like living back in the UK for you.

Which part of the UK does his accent resemble? ‘British’ covers a vast range of accents

Scottish - Australian, although I’m not sure I completely fit in either place. I feel a deep connection to Scottish places/scenery/landscapes, but less and less to the way of life. I feel less of a connection to Australian places/scenery/landscapes but more and more a connection to the way of life here. I don't perceive there to be a cohesive 'British’ identity anymore. I’m not sure there ever was outside certain areas, the BBC and biscuit tins.

The 15 min wait is standard for any vaccination, to monitor for adverse reactions. This happens with the flu shot at pharmacies too. Unsure regarding the medical history aspect but when I received the flu shot the pharmacist asked me about any health issues/history and/or medications, so perhaps this is also standard?

Attempted? Did you accidentally urinate privately instead?

The decision to limit travel is certainly a debate worth having, each position has merit and I suspect we would be on opposite sides of that debate. Putting that debate to one side, trying to circumvent the rules that are currently in place by lying or dishonesty is the part I take issue with.