CHO demands vaccine audit as health blunder locks down state

Health staff across Queensland will be audited to ensure those most at risk of contracting Covid-19 are vaccinated.

Health staff across Queensland will be audited to ensure those most at risk of contracting Covid-19 are urgently vaccinated, after the infection of an unvaccinated hospital worker plunged four million residents into a three-day lockdown.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young called a snap meeting of Queensland health bosses across the state on Tuesday following shocking revelations the hospital worker at the centre of the latest lockdown was unvaccinated despite staffing a Covid-19 ward.

The woman, a 19-year-old casual clerical employee, worked outside the virus ward at The Prince Charles Hospital – where she acquired the Delta Covid-19 variant from a patient.

Her lack of vaccination infuriated Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, who has promised to hold someone accountable after a “full and thorough investigation” into why she had not been jabbed during the 1A and 1B rollout.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young yesterday. Picture: Dan Peled/NCA NewsWire

“There was a direction in place and the direction wasn’t followed,” the Premier said.

The Prince Charles Hospital staff have been offered “priority walk-ins” at the onsite vaccination clinic, and those working in a concierge role should now have received at least one vaccination before attending work, an email to staff reveals.

Dr Young said health staff working in high-risk environments should already be vaccinated.

“The issue here is that this individual worked outside the Covid ward – she did not work in the ward,” she said.

“I believe that is semantics, but that is what the investigation will look at.”

Hospital and health service heads across the state have been told to ensure eligible staff are vaccinated amid revelations just 60 per cent of Queensland’s health workers had received a jab.

“Most of our health workforce is working in facilities that don’t take Covid cases,” Dr Young said.

“I would like to see, of course, 100 per cent of our hospital and healthcare workers, administrative, operational, cleaners, maintenance men – 100 per cent of them vaccinated.

“It’s a concern it has taken this long but I can understand it.”

Dr Young said priorities could be blamed for delays, with an international flight crew considered a higher risk than a Weipa Hospital worker.

“This is that really fine balancing act and unfortunately we don’t have enough Pfizer vaccine to say right, let’s vaccinate anyone,” she said.

She said the “absolute priority” was ensuring workers within the state’s five Covid-19 hospitals were protected.

Health Minister Yvette D’Ath also moved to ensure there was no “grey area”, insisting anyone on the frontline of the pandemic must be jabbed.

“This person should have been vaccinated, I could not be clearer,” Ms D’Ath said.

“In this case there seems to be a view that this person didn’t fall into 1A so they weren’t mandated.

“This is a highly infectious disease that we are doing everything possible to contain.”