Prof Kidd heaped praise on that portion of Australia’s population, as NSW and Victoria continue to battle against a steady flow of coronavirus cases.
“I want to do a big thank you to all of your listeners who are born overseas who are doing the right thing and who are playing their part in bringing COVID-19 under control, especially in Victoria,” he told SBS Arabic24 as a message to listeners of the station.
"What we know is people who were born overseas are more likely to be following the health measures in Australia than people who were born in Australia."
He said it was “really important” that Australians don’t become complacent about getting tested if they begin to show symptoms.
It comes as NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian on Wednesday warned her state is "on the verge" of another seeding event similar to one that saw a surge in coronavirus cases in July.
NSW recorded , which came a day after the state recorded 11 locally transmitted cases.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian speaks during Question Time in the state parliament Source: AAP
More than 15,800 tests were conducted during the 24 hours up to 8pm on Wednesday, and 16,000 during the 24 hours before that, which are far short of the recommendation of daily tests upward of 20,000.
“I know that people are getting fatigued and tired. People who have been tested two or three times before may be feeling that it’s not worthwhile being tested again if they start to develop symptoms, but it is worthwhile getting tested, it’s essential that people be tested if they have symptoms,” Prof Kidd said.
“So even if it’s the fifth, sixth, seven or eighth time that you have gone to get a COVID test because you’ve got symptoms please go and get done. It will protect your health and the health of your family members. It will help us to see the restrictions eased sooner than otherwise might be the case.”
Victoria recorded six new cases of coronavirus and no deaths on Thursday, as concern mounts about an outbreak in Shepparton.
Prof Kidd said it was "worrying" to see testing rates fall in some parts of the country, especially in Melbourne.
"We still have a very serious outbreak currently underway [in Melbourne]," he said.
"If we want to get on top of COVID-19 and want to remain in control of this pandemic, the core component is that people get tested and for the people who have been diagnosed with COVID-19, to work with the contact tracers to work out who may have been exposed.
"I'm very worried when we see only 25 per cent of people with symptoms getting tested, we should need to have 100 per cent of people getting tested."
Governments across Europe are ramping up restrictions to try to beat back a resurgence of coronavirus cases on the continent which has recorded their highest weekly level since the start of the pandemic.
In comparing Europe and Australia, Prof Kidd said people in Australia are "very fortunate" due to the effectiveness of the public health responses.
"We have not got an out-of-control pandemic at the moment with hundreds of thousands of people being infected and tens of thousands of people losing their lives.
"This is what we've seen happen right now in many other countries around the world. We have to remain vigilant and we have to play our part if we want to continue to protect Australia and the people who live in Australia."
Summer 'different this year'
As Summer approaches, Prof Kidd said it was too early to know whether extended family gatherings or religious congregation gatherings will be taking place in different cities across the country.
"In Australia, we love our summer, it is a time traditionally where families come together and unfortunately this year we have these restrictions in place and as we've experienced with all the religious holidays during 2020, the religious operations during the summer holidays will be different this year to before."
People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your jurisdiction's restrictions on gathering limits.
If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, stay home and arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.
Please check the relevant guidelines for your state or territory: , , , , , ,
