Seven elderly residents die in flu outbreak at Wangaratta’s St John’s Retirement Village

LATEST: THE STATE’S peak medical body says it’s not practical to make immunisations compulsory for aged care workers, in the wake of two recent deadly flu outbreaks in Victoria and Tasmania.

St John’s Retirement Village in Wangaratta. Picture: Jay Town

THE STATE’S peak medical body says it’s not practical to make immunisations compulsory for aged care workers, in the wake of two recent deadly flu outbreaks in Victoria and Tasmania.

Seven elderly residents of a Wangaratta nursing home died and an eighth was placed in palliative care, in one of the worst concentrated influenza outbreaks in recent memory.

AMA Victoria president Dr Lorraine Baker said while she understood the victim’s families would be aggrieved if they believed unvaccinated staff members had spread the virus, it was “difficult” to call for compulsory vaccinations for all workers.

St John’s Retirement Village in Wangaratta. Picture: Jay Town

“There are some people who unfortunately aren’t able to be vaccinated, so you would be depriving them of the capacity to work,” she said.

“What’s important is that you vaccinate the large majority of people 95 per cent plus, so that you have good herd immunity.”

The home has 146 residents, and the outbreak has infected a total of 123 residents and staff.

Dr Baker said patients in nursing homes had the right to refuse vaccination.

“I’m a GP who goes to nursing homes, and I have patients who refuse to have the flu vaccine,” she said.

“We need to get messages out there to encourage people to accept that influenza vaccination is very important.”

The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency will investigate after Victoria’s Health Department queried whether St John’s Retirement Village took too long to notify it, possibly costing it a chance to limit the disease’s toll.

St John’s Retirement Village staff members Deborah Davies and Sheryn Larkin wear protection gear. Picture: Jay Town

Victoria’s record flu season, in which more than 11,300 cases have been confirmed, has now claimed 60 nursing home residents, prompting health authorities to warn anyone with an illness to avoid aged care centres where the residents are particularly vulnerable to the illness.

A virulent strain of influenza A accounted for most of the notified flu cases statewide.

Dr Baker said aside from vaccination, staying away from others when you are unwell was vital to reducing the spread.

“One of the most important things we ask of people who are sick, if you wake up with a runny nose or sore throat, and feel a bit achy, please don’t go out to the community,” Dr Baker said.

“What the community needs to recognise that we can’t prevent absolutely everything.

“We know what delivers the ideal prevention for infectious diseases is having the large majority of the population vaccination.

“These viruses are still capable of individual and bypassing even the immunity conferred by active immunisation. The best way is to have most of the population vaccinated, and isolate cases.”

The Health Department is now working with St John’s, 250km northeast of Melbourne, to limit the flu outbreak, and strict infection control measures are in place.

THE VICTIMS

Victims of the Wangaratta outbreak, three women and four men aged 70 to 94, all had other conditions that made them susceptible to influenza.

The grandson of one resident still in lockdown at St John’s said he was concerned for his grandmother’s welfare.

Peter, who declined to give his last name, arrived at St John’s to drop off supplies, but was not to allowed to see her.

“I think they (St John’s Village) should have alerted authorities sooner,” he said.

“Once the flu spreads it would be hard to manage and stop, especially (with) those who are more vulnerable to it.

“Of course I’m worried ... seven people have died. But I trust the staff here,” he said.

Outside St John’s Retirement Village. Picture: Jay Town

A sign on a door at St John’s Retirement Village. Picture: Jay Town

St John’s Retirement Village’s chairman, Bishop John Parkes, said the first outbreak hit the aged care home in mid-August, when two residents died. He said the seventh resident died this week.

“There is currently an eighth resident who is severely unwell and we are doing all we can to make them comfortable,” Bishop Parkes said.

He said this winter’s flu outbreak had been the worst he had ever seen.

“It’s really hit us hard,” he said.

“We’ve done everything we could have done and should have done.”

St John’s Retirement Village chairman Bishop John Parkes says the aged care home has done everything it can. Picture: Jay Town

Victoria’s Acting Chief Health Officer, Dr Brett Sutton, said that while there were no systemic problems with infection control measures at St John’s, he questioned whether the department could have been notified sooner so measures could have been taken to limit the outbreak.

“I think all facilities can do better in notifying us early, because we provide robust and evidence-based advice with every outbreak. And if that can be implemented right at the beginning, you don’t get these huge peaks with so many numbers involved,” Dr Sutton said.

“With over 120 cases, unfortunately seven deaths is always a possibility. If you can prevent cases, obviously you can prevent deaths at the same time.”

Dr Sutton said St John’s reported the outbreak on August 14. The first victim died on August 16; others followed on August 17, 23, 24, 25, 27 and 30.

The latest tragedies follow the July deaths of three elderly residents in an outbreak at a Mulgrave nursing home. The flu swept through the 97-room Royal Freemasons’ ­Monash Gardens home, infecting 38 residents and staff before the all-clear was given on July 31.

Federal authorities oversee aged care home standards, and Aged Care Minister Ken Wyatt said he was confident Victoria would manage outbreak. “My thoughts are with the families of those affected at this difficult time,” he said.

“The Australian Aged Care Quality Agency will conduct an urgent review audit of (St John’s) as soon as Victoria’s Public Health Unit declares the influenza outbreak is over.”

Aged-care centres and hospitals have been especially hard hit by the flu this year, experiencing 208 respiratory disease outbreaks compared with 104 at the same stage of 2016.

Dr Sutton said about 800 Victorians a year died from flu, making it the most dangerous communicable disease.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO GET A FLU JAB

IT IS not too late to be vaccinated against the flu, top health experts warn as Victoria faces at least another two months of flu season.

And it is the simple advice of thorough hand washing, covering your mouth while coughing or sneezing, and staying home when you’re sick, that doctors say remain the best protection amid Australia’s worst flu season in 15 years.

Dr Sutton said taking steps to avoid the flu was best, but those who did get sick should stay away from work or places where people were vulnerable, such as aged-care facilities.

“The issue with the flu is that it’s very contagious,” Dr Sutton said. “For those who are unwell with flu-like symptoms, they shouldn’t visit those in aged care. They should practice good hand hygiene with soup and water or hand gel, and still to be immunised if not yet for this season.”

Influenza is a highly contagious viral infection that quickly spreads via coughing, sneezing and close contact.

In addition to typical cold symptoms such as coughing, sore throat and congestion, flu includes the sudden onset of fever, fatigue and muscle aches that can last for a week.

In vulnerable groups, flu can lead to pneumonia and bronchitis, or make existing medical conditions worse.

While the elderly have been hit the hardest this winter, with the majority of the 60 Victorian deaths in recent months aged over 80, other vulnerable populations such as infants can also be severely affected.

Head of Monash Immunisation, Professor Jim Buttery said many parents were unaware babies can be vaccinated against the flu from six months of age, and they had been dealing with an increase in paediatric flu cases this season.

“There are real advances of preventing illness in a baby by giving the influenza vaccine,” he said. “Most of the reasons children get admitted for influenza is respiratory illness, and more rarely other complications that include brain infection and sometimes complex infections involving the heart.”

The flu vaccine is free for high-risk groups including pregnant women, people aged 65 and over, Aboriginal and Torres Strait populations, and those with medical conditions such as low immunity, diabetes, severe asthma, and heart or lung disease

— with Brigid O’Connell

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