Contact tracing in SA: What you need to know

One of the biggest contact tracing exercises for the new SA COVID cluster is now unfolding. So how are they doing it? And what happened to the promised introduction of QR codes and ID scanning?

South Australia was praised for its contact tracing in the outbreak of COVID-19 that occurred early this year, and has also announced plans to introduce QR codes, ID scanning and a $1.7m boost to the system in readiness for another outbreak. But Sunday’s outbreak came with many of these systems still weeks away from being introduced. So how does our contract tracing work? What was going to be introduced? And where are those programs at now?

CONTACT TRACING

Contact tracing in SA is currently done by interviewing people who have tested positive to COVID-19, to determine who they have been in contact with – and to then determine who they could potentially have spread it to and who they got it from.

The number of positive coronavirus cases in the new SA cluster has now reached 20 actual and suspected cases.

Fifteen of the cases are part of the original family cluster that was revealed on Sunday and is believed to have stemmed from a medi-hotel. Two more cases are linked.

Two of the cases are linked to unnamed aged care facility and another works at Hungry Jack’s at Port Adelaide. The aged care facility and the Hungry Jack’s restaurant have now been closed. As has Mawson Lakes Primary and Kindergarten, Thomas More College and Parafield Plaza Shopping Centre.

The cases are the first community transmission in the state since April 15.

SA Health is in the process of contacting anyone who may have been in close contact with the confirmed COVID-19 cases and potential cases.

They are contacting anyone who was in the Emergency Department at Lyell McEwin Hospital between 5:30pm Friday, November 13 and 4am Saturday, November 14, who may have been in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case.

However, if you have visited this location during this time, and have not been contacted by SA Health, you should self-quarantine immediately and call the SA COVID-19 Information line 1800 253 787.

If you have visited any of the below locations during the listed time, you do not need to self-quarantine but you should monitor for symptoms and get tested immediately if symptoms appear:

GET TESTED

Symptoms of COVID-19 can include fever, chills, cough, sore throat, runny nose, shortness of breath, or loss of taste or smell.

If you have any concerns about your health, contact your GP. ​

Stay home if you are sick.

If you have any COVID-19 symptoms, no matter how mild, get tested.

Keep 1.5 metres distance from others wherever and whenever possible.

Wash your hands with soap and water, or hand sanitiser.

CLICK HERE TO FIND A TESTING STATION

WILL RESTRICTIONS TIGHTEN? WILL WE GO BACK INTO LOCKDOWN?

SA Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said the next 48 hours would be crucial in determining if any changes to current protocols were needed. He said returning to restrictions imposed during the height of the pandemic would be the “worst-case scenario”.

SA HEALTH’S NEW $1.7M IT PROGRAM

On Saturday, SA Health announced a $1.7m boost to contract tracing systems.

The new central IT program will replace current handwritten whiteboard systems and allow teams to juggle almost three times more virus cases in a second-wave outbreak.

The system, to be fully online within weeks, would centrally develop “high-quality” data and send automated text messages to ill patients.

It would accelerate infection source checks and help track contacts within 48 hours so they can quarantine sooner.

Providing insight for the first time into the lengths virus sleuths went to reconstruct patient backgrounds, authorities warned of the dangers of lying in confidential interviews, which could thwart efforts to stop a cluster from spreading.

This news came a day before the new breakout in SA.

QR CODES AND ID SCANNING

The easing of restrictions in SA next week was to be underpinned by new contact tracing systems, which authorities said earlier this month would allow them to rapidly identify and isolate new cases of the virus.

The system has yet to be introduced to SA, which is now facing a serious and growing cluster outbreak.

The system would include “quick response” QR codes as well as identification scanners.

Committee minutes show the Department of Premier and Cabinet in early June began investigating “technical options” to easily facilitate attendance and the keeping of contact tracing records, such as those already in use in places such as New Zealand.

Officials from SA Health, SA Police, Liquor Licencing Commission – which is part of the Attorney-General department – and DPC are involved in its development.

It is based on the successful introduction in New South Wales and Queensland, where venues have reported its success and ease of use. Victoria is also investigating similar solutions.

QR codes are a barcode capable of storing information that can be read by smartphone cameras and special QR code reader apps, which are available in Apple and Android stores.

Any type of information can be stored in the codes, including a person’s name, phone number and address.

WHAT WOULD QR CODES MEAN FOR VENUES?

Codes could be downloaded as many times as needed.

“It simply requires them (venue owners) to download their COVID safe plan again and obtain that QR code logo and put it all the way through their venue,” Police Comissioner Grant Stevens, who is state COVID co-ordinator, told The Advertiser earlier this month said.

“It doesn’t have to be put on a door, it could be a table or a bar, rest areas. It is simply giving people an opportunity to scan their code.”

Mr Stevens said the information contained in either QR codes or scanners would be used to immediately identity patrons who may have come into contact with an infectious person.

WHAT IF I DON’T HAVE A SMART PHONE?

Mr Stevens said identification scanners could instead be used to take a photograph of a person’s driver’s licence, business card or anything else that contained a patron’s contact information.

WHAT ARE THESE SYSTEMS NECESSARY?

South Australia, Chief public health officer, Professor Nicola Spurrier, said it was vital for her tracing teams to have the ability to quickly identify anyone who may be a close contact of any infectious COVID-19 patient.

“My team has to get every single quarantine within 48 hours if we are to stop transmission,” she said. “If we don’t stop that chain of transmission it can get out of control very, very quickly.”

WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO MY DATA?

Mr Stevens, along with Premier Steven Marshall, has been at pains to stress that data will be protected.

Mr Stevens said information would be stored by the SA Government and deleted after 28 days.

“The whole principle of capturing this information is so if there is a confirmed outbreak from the venue we’re able to access that as quickly as possible and contact those people,” Mr Steven said.

“Then there will be the isolation requirement which is critical for people who are testing positive”.

“This means we only have to have the data for a relatively short period of time – one or two incubation cycles (14 or 28 days). Once we are through that, data will be deleted.”

Mr Marshall said “patrons need to know that data will be protected”.

He said it would be used for a short period of time in a “far more secure environment” than at present as many venues currently have handwritten records.

Originally published as Contact tracing in SA: What you need to know