Chief Health Officer Dr John Gerrard on the Covid phone call that changed everything

Two years ago today, in his former role at a Gold Coast hospital, chief health officer Dr John Gerrard took a phone call that would change everything. Here, he tells how the state got through the worst of the pandemic, and offers his praise for the parts we all played.

Two years ago today I took a phone call which would change everything.

The Gold Coast University Hospital where I worked had admitted a Chinese tourist who presented with worrying symptoms. They seemed to match those of an unnamed virus that hospitals across the world had been alerted to, a virus which at this point had no official name beyond “a novel coronavirus from Wuhan”.

A nasal swab was taken from the patient. And at 7pm came the phone call from our Forensic Services team: my patient had Queensland’s first case of what we would all come to know as COVID-19.

I remember thinking, in quick succession, “Oh my God” and “Here we Go.”

A phone call to my predecessor Dr Jeannette Young set our next steps in motion, and nine members of the man’s travelling group were admitted to hospital. Six would go on to test positive but somehow, despite the group’s time in the community, the outbreak was contained.

For the next two years a bold strategy of strict public health measures continued to keep COVID-19 at bay in Queensland as we bought time for science to develop and produce a vaccine. Queenslanders all worked hard to keep the virus out of Queensland while we got 80 per cent of the state vaccinated. Compared to other jurisdictions in Australia and overseas, this approach has saved thousands of lives, and helped limit the impact on our social and economic wellbeing.

CHO

The game changer, of course, was Omicron. Incredibly, it is just nine weeks since the highly-infectious Omicron was officially declared a variant of concern by the World Health Organisation. In just nine weeks we have all had to adapt and evolve quickly as the emergence of Omicron coincided with the opening of our borders.

We are obviously not alone. Globally, communities are grappling with Omicron, and manoeuvring as quickly as possible. In Queensland, we have always planned for case numbers on the current scale, but Omicron has certainly accelerated that planned response. That has meant almost daily changes to the way we all live and work, to adapt to our new world and shore up all our defences. New definitions of close contacts. New rules for essential workers. New testing protocols. New start dates for schools. At times it may have seemed too much too quickly. I can only reassure you that the rationale for these changes was always evidence-based and measured and always, always putting public health first.

One of the biggest shifts required of the community is the realisation that, thanks to vaccines, most of us will have a relatively mild experience with COVID-19 and can recover at home. This has been a significant shift in our health response and our mindsets, but a necessary one. Part of living with Covid is learning to treat it like any other illness: stay at home; rest and keep well hydrated; monitor your symptoms; seek medical advice if you are particularly vulnerable – are elderly, immunocompromised, living with a disability, or pregnant – and only ring triple-0 if you experience an escalation of symptoms.

The symptoms to watch out for are: difficulty breathing even when walking around the house, coughing up blood, significant chest pain, collapsing or fainting.

If you have any concerns about your symptoms, support is available. Talk to your healthcare worker or doctor, or you can call the National coronavirus Helpline on 1800 020 080 (ask for an interpreter, if you need one) or check your symptoms with the Healthdirect Symptom Checker.

We are also learning just how vital a booster is to provide continued protection against this new variant. In Queensland you now only have to wait three months between your second and third vaccinations. More than a million Queenslanders have already taken this step. Please book in for your booster as soon as possible if you haven’t already. The existence of boosters is not some sort of sign the vaccination has failed, as I’ve seen from some misguided commentary.

The Gold Coast University Hospital where the US actor Tom Hanks and his wife Rita Wilson were admitted for the COVID-19. (Photo by Patrick HAMILTON / AFP)

On the contrary, boosters are a sign that science is staying ahead of a fast-evolving virus. Please make the most of new protections on offer as they emerge.

As we approach the peak of this Omicron wave, I want to acknowledge the extraordinary work of our frontline staff, and those who support them. Only those working on the frontline can truly understand the impact of working long hours in full PPE; of providing care, support and reassurance to patients who are frightened and suffering; and of facing fear for themselves and for their own families. We are truly thankful for your dedication and service to caring for Queenslanders as we navigate this peak.

I also want to acknowledge the role that every Queenslander has played to help us get to this point in the pandemic, in better shape than most around the globe. Imagine how Queenslanders must have felt during the Spanish Influenza pandemic in 1918/19. I’m sure that many would have lost hope and thought that it would never end. But of course it did, and very soon life returned to normal. The difference of course is that we have had the benefit of modern science to develop vaccines and protect lives.

Your trust and hard work for two years has brought us to this point. I know you must feel tired, anxious and frustrated and want to get back to some sort of normal life. It is not possible to get through this phase without an impact on all of us. However, we are well prepared and we will get past this to emerge into the lives and freedoms that we so treasure. You have my commitment that I will continue to work together with every Queenslander until we have reached our destination. I know you will all play your part.

Thank you.