Tamworth coronavirus-free for 11 months, a year on from confirmed cases

In March 2020, Tamworth had a steadily increasing number of confirmed patients suffering from the respiratory disease.

The number only ever reached 13, with the last case confirmed in April 2020.

But even with such a significant milestone, and the vaccine on the way, Hunter New England Health (HNEH) physician David Durrheim doesn't want locals to become complacent.

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"We're in a good position to roll out vaccines, not in an emergency like the rest of the world, but I think the big challenge will be because we're used to a normal lifestyle, the spectre of COVID has slipped to the back of our minds," Dr Durrheim said.

"We can't afford to be complacent and people need to grab the opportunity to get vaccinated because it's really the only way out of the pandemic.

"We have to remain on the alert because we get the occasional spill out from quarantine into the community, but NSW has done an extraordinary job in keeping our communities safe."

Dr Durrheim said while it was exciting to have reached such a significant occasion of no cases, those who had the virus last year would not have forgotten.

"For people that were affected, and I recall there was a tragic loss of life ... they won't have moved on, it's very hard," he told the Leader.

"I think that sometimes it's useful to reflect back on those times, because it feels like a very long time ago, and reminds ourselves of the real anxiety with newspaper headlines when people close to us were affected.

"It's so fortunate that within an year, we have effective and safe vaccines rolled out in Australia so we don't have to go back to that panic-ridden state."

Over the past month, 1929 tests were conducted at sites in Tamworth.

But these figures have steadily dropped; going from 605 tests in the week ending February 21, to 393 tests in the week ending March 14.

"We know just how quickly the virus can escape back into the community with those QLD and NSW cases, so people should not ignore any signs or symptoms of COVID but get tested to ensure they haven't been inadvertently affected," Dr Durrheim warned.

According to HNEH statistics, a total of 1061 swabs were taken in Armidale during the same time period, 309 in Inverell, 282 in Gunnedah, and 136 in Narrabri.

There was 4450 tests completed in total in the New England area.

Sewer surveillance remains "in the green" for the region.

"Since initiating sewerage testing in Tamworth, we haven't had a detect, which is reassuring, but we encourage anyone who has symptoms to get tested," Dr Durrheim said.

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