Brady Hotel guests’ behaviour ‘embodies DHHS mismanagement’

The drama that played out in Room 904 at Melbourne’s Brady Hotel on July 31 is typical of day-to-day life in quarantine hotels, concerned staff say.

The Brady Hotel in Melbourne. Picture: Aaron Francis

The drama that played out in Room 904 at Melbourne’s Brady Hotel on July 31 is typical of day-to-day life in quarantine hotels, concerned staff say.

According to a written complaint seen by The Australian, what the guest from that room endured was the result of mismanagement from DHHS officials.

“I am writing to raise some of my concerns with regard to quarantine management at The Brady … There were a number of issues throughout the day which I believe were poorly managed by DHHS, Public Health and police and need to be addressed,” the complaint states.

“The guest residing in Room 904 … was referred to me upon ­arrival to the shift at 09:30am. Brady nursing staff reported that she had been opening her door overnight and presenting as highly anxious; night staff had spent time supporting her and requested MHT to follow her up that day.

“Later in the morning, n/staff were informed by DHHS that the same guest was attempting to leave her room.”

The environment within the Grand Chancellor and The Brady for guests — last week there were up to 200 infected people and close contacts in both hotels — is fraught for medical staff, police and DHHS officials.

Sometimes, the staff believes the police aren’t doing enough. At other times, the staff believes the police are doing too much.

The complaint says after a “con­siderable amount of time, the guest in Room 904 had sourced a private Airbnb rental for her to safely complete the rest of time in self-isolation”.

By now, the account says, the guest was waiting for non-urgent patient transport to take her to her Airbnb, and had agreed to wear full PPE. “Despite her distress and anxiety, she was agreeable to work with nursing staff and DHHS/public health requests. I believe a (vehicle was) booked and (she) was waiting in her room for this.”

The complaint states that nursing staff heard DHHS team leaders talking about the guest in “derogatory manner”, breaching the guest’s confidentiality. Some nurses felt the DHHS team leader was mocking the guest.

Later that day, the complaint states, nurses were informed the guest in Room 904 had been hit with a detention order and could no longer be considered a voluntary guest. “The rationale for this was not explained. We were informed that if she were to leave her room, she would now receive a fine from police and if she were to attempt further she may be detained and taken to the Remand Centre.

“DHHS had attempted to deliver a detention notice to the guest’s room to advise her that she could no longer leave, which she refused to accept. Police had also spoken with her over the phone.”

The DHHS team leader, according to the complaint, “did not manage the ongoing situation in what I believe to be a fair, supportive or professional manner. He suggested the guest had caused this situation herself “because of her own behaviour”, insisting that as she had voluntarily agreed to come to the hotel, she must accept the consequences of this.

“He (showed) no empathy or understanding as to why the guest may have changed her mind due to anxiety or distress … He suggested the reason for her wanting to leave was suspicious.

“He continued to speak about the guest in a punitive manner.”

The complaint says DHHS staff informed the guest transport had been arranged for her but this was a ruse to calm her down, and none had been organised.

“It is an unfair way to treat anyone, particularly in this environment where they are physically unwell and have had their freedoms removed. Making promises that are not kept is setting people up to fail and not any manner in which to provide care to highly vulnerable people.”

The nursing staff were unhappy with the conduct of the police in this case. “Whilst I was waiting outside the DHHS office, I overheard a comment in the police office that ‘the nursing staff just need to do their f..cking job!’.

“I tried to highlight to DHHS and police the reason for the guest’s escalating behaviour would be due to conflicting information provided to her. They seemed to have limited empathy or understanding of this.”