Governments could soon begin setting up dedicated coronavirus clinics around Australia to manage a predicted surge in cases, the federal Chief Medical Officer says.

Professor Brendan Murphy says a network of GP or nurse-led clinics will “probably” be created in coming weeks to ensure as many patients with COVID-19 as possible can be cared for outside the hospital system.

He made the announcement on Friday, after meeting with state, territory and federal health ministers to plan a co-ordinated national response to a likely pandemic, caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

“We probably will be setting up dedicated primary care clinics either through the states and territories or GP clinics, trying to get people who get infected to isolate at home and delay the spread,” he told reporters in Melbourne.