Covid Queensland: Four hospitals at Tier 3 as fourth wave hits

Bed shortages in Queensland Hospitals are escalating as the state is getting slammed by the fourth Covid-19 wave, with four hospitals now in a Tier 3 ‘acute’ activation state.

Four public hospitals around the state are now experiencing high levels of bed shortages, as the federal government has announced changes to the vaccination rollout.

As the fourth wave hits Queensland, state-run hospitals are feeling the pressure as four facilities have now moved to a Tier 3 in the pandemic response, meaning there are acute bed shortages across the hospital networks.

Queensland Health has confirmed that Cairns Health, Mackay Hospital, Townsville University Hospital and Rockhampton Hospital are all at Tier 3 activation as of 11am on Monday morning.

Caboolture and Redcliffe Hospitals are at Tier 2.

Dr Bruce Willet administers a fourth Covid booster jab to Justine Webb, the practice manager, at the Victoria Point Surgery. Pic: Lyndon Mechielsen

According to Queensland Health a Tier 3 means there is a high impact on the hospital, and patient loads have to be shared across the network, including private hospital beds being used to help with rising demand.

Hospitals will reassess whether elective surgeries will proceed under tier three activation.

A Queensland Health spokeswoman said anyone who presents at state emergency departments will still be seen, but the most urgent cases will be treated first.

“All Hospital and Health Services are carefully monitoring the current situation to ensure they have the flexibility and capacity to respond to changing demands and pressures at a local level,” she said.

Staff are currently being redeployed to the busiest clinical areas and movement is being limited around facilities, the spokeswoman said.

It comes as ATAGI has approved a fourth dose of the vaccine for 18 to 30 year olds, while not recommending a fifth dose for the rest of Australia yet.

The Pfizer bivalent vaccine can now be used for the third and fourth dose for those over 18 years old and targets the Omicron sub-variants.

Health Minister Mark Butler said ATAGI decided not to recommend the fifth dose after considering international and local data.

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

“ATAGI reiterated that they are continuing to actively review the role of booster doses,” Mr Butler said.

“They noted in that, in their view, any reduction in transmission in this current what appears to be a building wave, any reduction in transmission by adding a fifth dose to the system would, in their words, likely be minimal.”

A statement from ATAGI said new booster recommendations are anticipated early next year in preparation for winter.

The head of the state’s peak medical body said it was “truly frightening” to see hospitals reaching Tier 3.

Australian Medical Association Queensland president, Dr Maria Boutlon said health care workers are doing the best they can in an “under-resourced system” as elective surgeries are cancelled or postponed to make way for Covid patients.

“Our thoughts are with patients who may have already been waiting for months or years in pain for life-changing surgery, who now face further uncertainty and delays,” she said.

Removing the mask mandate in healthcare settings was a “mistake”, according to Ms Boulton who urged the government to reinstate certain measures and push for boosters.

“We are about to see people travelling interstate and overseas for Christmas, and we have a soup of different variants floating around,” she said.

“We are going to see more ambulance ramping and stressed emergency departments because Covid patients will be taking up hospital beds. We need everyone to take personal responsibility to control this fourth wave.”