‘Sheer madness’: Hospital support workers turned back at the border

After a local MP raised concerns, a Gold Coast hospital has moved to ensure critical staff who live across the border can make it to work on Monday.

A Gold Coast state MP has slammed the ‘sheer madness’ that she says is seeing hospital support workers turned back at the border.

Member for Currumbin Laura Gerber, whose southern Coast seat abuts the border, says she’s been contacted by health workers and hospital administrators with ‘deep concerns’ about how they will function without Tweed-based staff who are being refused entry to Queensland after all of NSW was plunged into lockdown on Saturday.

It comes after dozens of Queensland teachers who live on the Tweed were also classified as non-essential by Queensland Health and banned from crossing the border.

Ms Gerber said she was ‘very concerned’ for border hospitals including the major John Flynn Private at Tugun.

Currumbin MP Laura Gerber. Picture: Luke Mortimer

“Our Labor government doesn’t see teachers as essential and now the backbone of our hospitals, the cleaners and support staff are not essential. This is sheer madness!” she said.

“I see all health professionals as essential workers. It would be ludicrous to deem them otherwise.”

“A large proportion of hospital support staff come from NSW.”

“Today only registered health practitioners are considered essential workers and allowed to cross the border.

“The cleaners and administration staff are integral to the operation of a hospitals. They are just as important to a hospital as the doctors and nurses. Currently these people are locked out of our hospitals.

“John Flynn Hospital has a very strong COVID safe plan for all of their employees. They need to know that their support staff from across the border can keep their hospital running.”

“Also, the health care workers that are permitted to cross today cannot because of traffic delays.”

“The Health Minster needs to rapidly come up with a solution so border hospitals can continue to operate.”

Late on Sunday, Gold Coast police chief acting superintendent Rhys Wildman said the problem had been resolved, with John Flynn Hospital issuing a letter to staff including cleaners and chefs needing to cross the border to get to work.

Supt Wildman said staff with the letter would be waved through the checkpoints.

Ms Gerber said she was relieved but it was ‘a disgrace’ that the State Government had left vital hospital workers stranded.

She said about 30 per cent of John Flynn’s workforce lived south of the border.

Originally published as ‘Sheer madness’: Hospital support workers turned back at the border