Three specialist coronavirus testing clinics will be opened at Perth hospitals next week as the WA Government considers reopening the mothballed Princess Margaret Hospital for Children for larger-scale testing if the virus starts to spread locally.

Key points: PMH closed in 2018 with the opening of Perth Children's Hospital

PMH closed in 2018 with the opening of Perth Children's Hospital It is one of the sites being considered for large-scale treatment

It is one of the sites being considered for large-scale treatment Two West Australians have so far tested positive for the virus

The first so-called "fever clinics" will be opened at Royal Perth, Sir Charles Gairdner and Fiona Stanley hospitals.

The clinics would be located in either a dedicated hospital room or a temporary building on hospital grounds.

They would be staffed by medical specialists and be equipped to test adults and children, who would be able to turn up for testing without a GP referral.

Clinic opening times have not yet been finalised.

Only two West Australians have so far been confirmed as coronavirus cases — 78-year-old James Kwan, who died at the weekend, and his 79-year-old wife.

Both of them contracted the virus on the Diamond Process cruise ship in Japan.

Mr Kwan was diagnosed after the couple were evacuated to Darwin, while his wife tested positive after they were flown back to Perth for treatment.

James Kwan passed away at Sir Charles Gardiner Hospital in Perth over the weekend. ( Supplied: Australian Tourism Export Council )

Risk remains low in WA

The WA deputy chief health officer Robyn Lawrence said the risk of coronavirus in WA remained low, with 700 people tested since the global virus outbreak, or an average of 40 people a day.

Dr Lawrence said the initial three fever clinics would be able to meet that level of demand, but more clinics would be opened at other hospitals if required.

She said if the virus started to spread locally, the Government would consider opening testing clinics in larger buildings, including decommissioned facilities like Princess Margaret Hospital.

The Princess Margaret Hospital site in Subiaco has been fenced off since it closed its doors in 2018. ( ABC News: Eliza Lashon )

"PMH could be in that list," she said.

"It has been fully decommissioned so it's not a clinical facility that can be readily established, but all options will remain on the table should they be required."

The WA Health Minister Roger Cook said a public information campaign would also be launched within days.

"We have been liaising with the Commonwealth and waiting for them to provide details of the national public health campaign, but we need to act earlier in the interests of the WA public," he said.

GPs criticised for turning away patients

The Australian Medical Association of WA said the rollout of the fever clinics was an "excellent start", but general practitioners needed more support to deal with potential cases.

Mr Cook said this morning it was "inappropriate" for GPs to refuse to treat patients.

"I've heard first-hand from people who have said they rang the GP to say 'I'm coming in, I'm not feeling well' and they were told not to come here," he told ABC Radio Perth.

"It's just unacceptable," he said.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 46 minutes 25 seconds 46 m How the coronavirus epidemic sparked a global emergency

AMA (WA) president Andrew Miller said he would "back any doctor, any nurse, any health care worker who feels that they understand the risk better than the Government".

He said some GPs were turning people away because they were struggling to source face masks and other personal protective equipment.

"If they don't have the right gear and they think they're exposing other patients and themselves to unacceptable risks then the AMA will back any practice that chooses to refer fever patients elsewhere," he said.

Some GP clinics have posted signs on their doors requesting patients who suspect they have coronavirus to wait in their car and call the surgery.

GPs, such as this one in the Perth suburb of Merriwa, have been instructing potential coronavirus patients to call before presenting. ( Supplied: Facebook )

To avoid GP clinics becoming overwhelmed, Dr Miller said telehealth services should be expanded to allow potential coronavirus patients to stay at home and receive an initial medical assessment via a video call.

Mr Cook said the issue was discussed at a meeting of state and federal health ministers last week, but it would require changes to the Medicare Benefits Schedule.

"I've written to the Federal Minister today to urge him to speed up that consideration," he said.

"We want to get this on the road now because we think that telehealth will be a very useful way that we can extend the amount of patients that can be seen by a primary care provider."