Eight locations could be key to Victoria’s recovery
Eight locations in Victoria could be key to the state’s COVID recovery, as the Federal Government is slammed for its slow response.
Eight venues in Victoria could be the key to the state’s coronavirus recovery as the state continues to grapple with a serious outbreak among aged care facilities.
The state is in the grip of an outbreak that saw cases rise to a record high of 532 cases on Monday even after almost three weeks of lockdown.
Despite the high numbers, experts say cases appear to be stabilising and Tuesday’s figure was much lower at 384 cases, although there were six deaths and four of these were linked to aged care facilities.
The crisis happening in Victoria’s aged care sector is so bad, Prime Minister Scott Morrison told reporters today he had changed his plans so he could return to Canberra this morning to engage with the problem this week.
He said more than 80 aged care facilities in Victoria had been affected, which is a substantial proportion of the more than 430 venues in the state.
But his government has been slammed by Labor for its slow response to the unfolding crisis, with critics saying authorities should have learnt the lessons from outbreaks in aged care homes in NSW.
Meanwhile Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced extra measures on Tuesday designed to address the “critical challenge” including the suspension of many elective surgery procedures to free up public healthcare staff to work in private facilities.
“I cannot stand here and tell you I have confidence that staff and management across a number of private sector aged care facilities are able to provide the care that is appropriate to keep their residents safe,” Mr Andrews told reporters.
“If I could say that, I would. But I won’t stand here and say that.”
The problem is mainly among private operators but Premier Andrews said the state would be providing help to the Commonwealth to get on top of infections.
“We don’t run this sector but the residents in these homes are all Victorians,” he said.
The containment of the coronavirus outbreaks in aged care is vital to reducing the state’s new cases.
Mr Andrews said 769 of the 4775 active cases in the state were linked to aged care.
In particular some of the biggest outbreaks have been at St Basil’s Home for the Aged in Fawkner, which has been linked to 86 cases; and Estia Aged Care Facility in Ardeer, linked to 88 cases.
On Monday, authorities also identified eight other facilities that could hold the key to Victoria’s recovery.
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Deakin University Professor Catherine Bennett said these eight aged care facilities had been identified as having one staff member each who was found to be positive.
They are:
• St Andrews Aged Care in Sunshine;
• Mercy Place Wyndham Aged Care Facility in Werribee;
• Mercy Place Keon Park Aged Care in Reservoir;
• VMCH Corpus Christi Aged Care in Clayton;
• VMCH Aged Care in Berwick;
• Cumberland Manor Aged Care Facility in Sunshine North;
• Uniting AgeWell in Box Hill; and
• Japara Bayview Aged Care in Carrum Downs.
Prof Bennett said if the single positive cases led to more cases, this had the potential to form more clusters, which means more large numbers of cases coming from aged care.
“If they don’t find any more cases there – and there hasn’t been transmission within the facility – then hopefully within the next week we might start to see the underlying community transmission numbers drop,” Prof Bennett told the ABC today.
As the crisis in the aged care sector continues, authorities on Monday announced workers would be entitled to paid pandemic leave in a bid to encourage them to stay home if they have symptoms and avoid further outbreaks in aged care homes.
On Tuesday it was announced the Federal Government would send Australian Medical Assistance Teams (AUSMAT) into Victoria, as well as five million masks and will request interstate nurses.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SLAMMED FOR SLOW RESPONSE
But Labor spokeswoman for ageing and seniors Julie Collins has slammed the Federal Government’s response and said it had not acted fast enough in Victoria.
“There are reports today they’re now sending more protection equipment to Victoria – two weeks later after the first outbreak in aged care,” Ms Collins said.
“We need to do better than this. The Federal Government should have learnt the lessons of what happened in New South Wales, in Dorothy Henderson Lodge and in Newmarch (House).”
Ms Collins said the Federal Government should have known how much PPE facilities in Victoria had access to.
“We shouldn’t have to be playing catch-up all the time. We should have learnt the lessons.
“In Newmarch House in NSW, one of the big lessons was the families didn’t get enough information at the right time about their loved one.”
Health Minister Greg Hunt defended the government’s response when asked whether it should have acted earlier, saying the circumstances in Sydney had been different and the current response was the most appropriate.
“The greatest threat to any institution is a major community outbreak,” he said.
“Against that background, we’ve responded but it’s absolutely critical not to pretend that anybody, any system is immune once you have a major community outbreak.”
On Tuesday, Mr Hunt confirmed the federal agency was investigating St Basil’s home in Victoria, amid calls from some family members that the facility should be shut down.
A private provider has taken over management of the venue, and Mr Hunt told ABC Breakfast the Victorian Public Health Unit had instructed all staff to immediately isolate, and emergency staff had been brought in.
Only 37 residents of the 115 residents at in St Basil’s were still living there, and Mr Hunt said authorities had transferred about 170 residents to public and private hospitals in recent days.
More residents may be transferred on Tuesday depending on medical advice. Residents in other aged care facilities, who test positive to the coronavirus, may also be moved if clinical advice suggests this should happen.
“It is not always possible to transfer everybody,” Mr Hunt said.
“We have very frail and elderly people in these nursing homes and in some cases they have dementia and it is very challenging and stressful for an elderly person to be moved in those particular circumstances but we will always act on the basis of clinical care advice.”
The state has also stepped up its response, with Premier Andrews confirming registered nurses from the public system had been sent to St Basil’s to support the care and wellbeing of the residents.
“My commitment to all is we will do everything we can with this, everything we’re asked to and we’ll go above and beyond that,” Mr Andrews told reporters on Tuesday.
MORRISON ACKNOWLEDGES AGED CARE CRISIS
The Prime Minister said the Commonwealth, which is responsible for regulating the aged care sector, is working with Victorian authorities to deal with the crisis in the state.
Mr Morrison told reporters on Tuesday that the need to stand-down many staff members in the aged care sector had caused significant disruption to the provision of care in those facilities.
“The Commonwealth has been working, including with other states, to ensure that we can plug those gaps wherever we possibly can,” Mr Morrison said.
“But I want to be upfront with you – it’s very difficult and it’s very hard to get people into those positions, particularly given the complexity and difficulty of the situations they’re facing.”
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The PM said Australian Defence Force nurses had been called in for a night shift in one Melbourne facility, and this was arranged about 11pm on Monday night.
“There is no effort being spared to ensure that we can get the people to the places they need to be,” he said.
Another measure that’s been taken is to transfer residents diagnosed with the coronavirus to public and private hospitals, a move that experts have been calling for.
“This is a very important part of the plan that is being implemented, that relieves the stress on those facilities where there are … residents who are able to be accommodated in those facilities in single rooms, in appropriate facilities,” Mr Morrison said.
He said significant personal protective equipment (PPE) had also been provided, and further steps were being taken to ensure training was available.
The PM has tasked Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck to focus on ensuring authorities do everything to fill the holes when it comes to communicating with families.
He said the disruption to the workforce meant there had been significant problems ensuring a continuity of communication with families.
“There is disruption and we would ask for patience but I understand that patience is very hard to come by when you’re talking about a loved one who’s been affected by COVID, and what’s been occurring in these facilities,” Mr Morrison said.
“COVID is a difficult beast to manage, and it means that there will be difficult tasks, and there will be hard times, and there will be complex solutions that are necessary.
“But the way we get on top of it is the way we’re acting, by working together. The Victorian and the Federal Government are working together.”
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