Covid Qld: Doctors call for masks at public gatherings in hospitals, GP surgeries and on planes

Queensland’s chief health officer says he will not make a recommendation about mask wearing amid a new wave of Covid-19, saying it would be disproportionate to the risk the virus presents. VOTE IN OUR POLL

Queensland doctors want masks to return at public gatherings and in hospitals, GP surgeries and planes as hospitalisations have soared since the start of the eighth Covid-19 wave.

Today, chief health officer Dr John Gerrard said there were 221 people in hospital, three times higher than the average of 77 in the 28 days prior. Yesterday there were 245 in hospital.

Dr Gerrard said no one had died four weeks into the latest wave, though there was a two-week lag time between someone being infected and getting so sick they die.

Only two people are in intensive care.

Dr Gerrard said the Covid-19 waves were getting less deadly.

It comes after Australian Medical Association president Maria Boulton slammed the lack of information being given to the public by Queensland Health over the latest surge and said doctors wanted the public to be encouraged to wear masks in the lead-up to Christmas.

On Tuesday, Dr Gerrard said he was still unsure of when the wave would peak but was likely before Christmas.

He said he would be making no general recommendations about mask wearing amid the new wave, saying the response must be proportionate to the risk.

“For me to overstate the risk would be disproportionate, to be making recommendations about general mask wearing would be disproportionate to the risk,” he said.

“It is very critical that the Office of the Chief Health Officer retains its credibility so that when I make a strong recommendation to do that, the public follow that recommendation.”

Dr Boulton said there was not enough communication from authorities on the latest wave.

“The association would like to see the chief health officer addressing the community regularly and guiding them on how we can avoid another disastrous Christmas,” Dr Boulton said.

Covid is running rampant across Queensland.

“The public should be encouraged to mask up in medical settings, planes or in crowds in the lead up to big Christmas gatherings. Of course, a mask mandate would be the decision of the CHO but hospitalisations are rising and the health workforce is stretched to breaking point and cannot cope with another overload of patients over the holidays.”

But Dr Gerrard said previous measures such as mask mandates were “exceptional and were taken in response to a public health emergency”.

“Covid-19 is now an ongoing part of our reality, much like other acute respiratory illnesses such as influenza and RSV,” he said.

“We have reverted to normal infection control measures in health care settings. Individual hospitals and health services will determine when and where masks are required within their facilities based on the local situation.

“Queensland Health continues to monitor Covid-19 as part of its broader surveillance of acute respiratory illnesses and Queenslanders should take health measures appropriate to their individual needs.”

A staff member walks past a sign at a Covid-19 vaccination hub on the Gold Coast. Picture: NCA NewsWire /Jono Searle

Dr Boulton said the public “needs to be reminded that very effective antivirals are available and given constant reminders on the need for booster jabs. We can’t be complacent.”

Individual health services in the state are able make their own decisions as to whether staff or visitors should mask up, but currently there are no public health directions requiring Queenslanders to wear a face mask.

Victoria’s acting chief health officer has urged Melbourne residents to consider wearing masks, while in NSW there is a requirement to wear a mask in some high-risk settings.

This month’s data shows a total of 210,600 Queenslanders have not yet had a single dose of the Covid-19 vaccine which is about 60 per cent of the national total of 350,100 people.

A total of 3.4m Queenslanders aged 18 or older have not had a booster jab in the last six months.

Dr Gerrard said Queensland was four weeks into the current wave, with cases continuing to increase in this state and across Australia.

“The cause of the increase is likely due to a decline in the number of people, particularly those aged 65 and over, remaining up to date with their vaccinations,” Dr Gerrard said.