Shocking footage shows Queenslanders trying to get Covid-19 to avoid extending isolation period

An Australian woman has posted to TikTok showing how her mother is ‘trying to get Covid’ so she doesn’t have to isolate as long.

Australians are flaunting how they are trying to catch Covid-19 from positive family members in the hope of delaying the inevitable and making their isolation period shorter.

Chelsea Austin has tested positive for the virus and is now isolating at her Gold Coast apartment with her mother, who has since been declared a close contact.

Infected people are allowed to leave isolation seven days after they test positive to the virus.

However, close contacts must isolate for seven days after their last contact with a positive person and will need to restart their seven-day isolation from the day they test positive.

@chelseaaustinn

it do be like that sometimes #isolation#covid19#omicron#goldcoast#covidpositive#bottomsup

♬ original sound - chels

Ms Austin shared a video to TikTok showing her mum drinking the remainder of her orange juice so she could infect herself with Covid-19 and begin her second round of isolation sooner.

“When you’re Covid positive and mum drinks your OJ [sic] to try and get Covid ASAP so we aren’t in extended iso [sic],” a caption on the video reads.

In the video, Ms Austin can be heard telling her mother “happy Covid” before saying “bottoms up”.

Her mother smiles at the camera before taking and drinking the juice.

Ms Austin revealed more than 24 hours later her mother still had not shown any symptoms and had been testing negative on rapid antigen tests.

“She’s still negative and no symptoms, she did have a booster though,” the young woman wrote.

The video has quickly taken off on the video-sharing platform, with more than 47,000 views and 1200 likes.

Multiple people in the comments have praised the controversial “hack”, with some saying they had done the same.

Chelsea Austin has tested positive for the virus and is now isolating. Picture: TikTok via NCA NewsWire

Ms Austin shared a video to TikTok showing her mum drinking the remainder of her orange juice. Picture: TikTok via NCA NewsWire

“We did that and it worked,” one person wrote.

Meanwhile, another said she shared a bed with her partner for a week and did not contract the virus.

Top doctors have slammed the “let it rip” strategy as the entire health industry across the country has come under major duress.

Royal Australian College of GPs (RACGP) President Dr Karen Price said doctors have been inundated with calls since Prime Minister Scott Morrison told people with positive rapid antigen tests to call.

“When the PM urged people to call their GP to tell them they’re COVID-19 positive, we were inundated with calls,” she wrote on Twitter on Friday.

“One practice owner told me they had 1,000 phone calls. In one hour.”

“Please be patient with general practice teams, we are doing our best.”

Already-stretched general practice staff have been left feeling “overwhelmed”, with phone lines in “meltdown” given the exploding infection rates across the country.