Emergency departments are worried people aren't getting the care they need, because they're too scared to go to hospital during the pandemic.
Waiting rooms have been left almost empty in some regions and doctors want people to know it is still okay to go to hospital if you need urgent care.
There's usually an hours-long wait for patients in need of emergency care. But since the lockdown, some emergency departments have seen patient volumes fall by up to 50 percent.
"We have noticed that there has been less patients presenting from obviously sports injuries, major trauma from driving," says Dr Vanessa Thornton, from the Middlemore Hospital Emergency Department.
That's a positive result of the lockdown but hospitals are concerned other people in need of acute care are staying away.
"People may be worried that they'll be exposed to COVID when they're here," Dr Thornton says.
"When they get here they'll notice that we have separated the streams and it may look different."
Patients are being screened upon arrival and anyone with a high risk of coronavirus is kept safely away from other emergency patients. They're also using protective clothing and cleaning between patients.
GPs are also struggling with a drop in people seeking help.
"We don't want people not to seek healthcare during this time because of the concern about COVID-19," says Director of Public Health Dr Caroline McElnay.
"We are concerned that there may be people with other health conditions who are not getting the treatment that they need."
During lockdown people may think that staying home is the right thing to do but for emergencies hospitals want people to come in.
The fear is people's conditions will deteriorate and they'll seek help too late.
"We want people to call 111 for emergencies, that's what we're here for, so life and limb-threatening conditions is what emergency departments look after. That's our everyday business," Dr Thornton says.
The message is, they're open for business, and if it's an emergency don't delay.
