Ruby Princess ground zero for North-West outbreak

UPDATED: The initial findings of what went wrong at the North West Regional Hospital are in. Now it is time for urgent action, the nurses’ union says. READ THE FULL REPORT HERE.

PROCESSES to improve infection control at Burnie’s public hospital need to be introduced urgently, the nurses’ union says.

An interim report into the outbreak at the North West Regional Hospital and other nearby medical facilities shows the ill-fated Ruby Princess cruise ship was the “root cause” of a deadly coronavirus outbreak.

Health care staff infected through treating two returned and infected passengers then passed on the virus to other staff and patients.

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“Learning and taking immediate action is the most important outcome,” Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Tasmanian branch secretary Emily Shepherd said.

“The overall aim is to identify what practices need to be improved so events like this do not happen again.”

ANMF Tasmanian Branch Secretary Emily Shepherd. Picture: PATRICK GEE

The union applauded a recommendation to prioritise local level infection control and set up teams, including infectious disease specialists, and boost communication between those on the wards and the Emergency Control Centre.

The report said health care staff continued to work at the NWRH hospital despite showing respiratory symptoms.

READ THE FULL REPORT HERE

Infected staff then met with colleagues in meetings and break rooms and spread the virus further.

Returning to the wards, they then infected 22 patients in total.

Mr Gutwein stressed the findings, which he received last night, should not be used to blame either the Tasmanian passengers who were treated in Burnie nor the health care staff looking after them.

“The report confirms that the most likely ground zero was the Ruby Princess,” Mr Gutwein said.

“No passenger or health worker is to blame

“It is a case of people going about their lives and jobs as a dreadful set of circumstances ensued and wreaked havoc on the community.

“Workers turned up unaware they were carrying symptoms. Sometimes our strong work ethic can be our worst enemy.”

Premier Peter Gutwein. Picture: LUKE BOWDEN

Health Minister Sarah Courtney said an implementation plan would be developed to ensure proper PPE guidelines and staff screenings are followed in the future.

The interim report was handed down as Tasmania recorded its 12th coronavirus related death and 219th case.

Eleven of those deaths occurred in the North West.

Director of Public Health Mark Veitch said two cruise ship passengers were admitted to the North West Regional Hospital in late March, with the first staff infection recorded on April 3.

Both those patients later died.

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By the time the first infection in the hospital was recorded the outbreak was already difficult to control.

“The passenger infected workers who subsequently transmitted to other workers which were recorded on April 4 and 5. There was a large increase over the following two weeks,” Dr Veitch said.

Ms Shepherd said the outbreak reinforced that the Tasmanian health system could not underestimate the virulence of COVID-19.

“This is particularly true when people are infected but asymptomatic and therefore unaware that they have the virus,” she said.

“Our members continue to work furiously to contain COVID-19. This report simply highlights this, while expanding on ways in which workers can be better supported to ensure that a similar outbreak does not occur again.”