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'An eviction': Patients removed from detox clinic after COVID-19 case
A positive case of COVID-19 at a withdrawal facility in Melbourne's north-east has led to vulnerable people detoxing from drugs and alcohol being thrown out of their accommodation, after inpatients were allowed to use common areas despite awaiting COVID-19 test results.
At least one patient affected, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said she was left homeless by the ordeal at the Re Gen withdrawal service, operated by UnitingCare, raising concerns about infection control in facilities that treat some of the most at-risk Victorians.
UnitingCare's Re Gen rehab facility in Melbourne's north-east.Credit:
UnitingCare has confirmed it closed the facility on August 6, with all residents required to leave in the midst of their detox.
The Melbourne woman entered the detox facility last Monday to begin treatment for alcohol addiction, and planned to stay there for 10 days before moving to a rehab facility to undertake a full six-to-12-month rehabilitation program.
She said all incoming patients were tested for coronavirus on arrival, but despite masks being mandatory, residents were not made to self-isolate in their rooms until their results arrived and up to 12 people were freely using common kitchen and lounge areas.
The woman claims a new arrival last Wednesday at the centre – which also caters to mothers with babies – who used a shared landline phone in the common lounge area, tested positive for COVID-19 the next day.
"When you arrive, your phone is taken from you," she said.
"This new resident had been using the phone, a mother with a baby had been using the phone and two other people who were moving from detox to [the separate] rehab was using it as well."
She said while there was spray and wipes beside the shared phone, she didn't think it was used properly, if at all, between uses.
Last Thursday morning, August 6, about 10 residents were notified that the new arrival's test had come back positive, and that everyone had to leave the facility while it underwent cleaning.
Laurence Alvis, a general manager of alcohol and other drugs and mental health at UnitingCare, said that as soon as the facility was made aware of the positive case, staff "immediately made arrangements to transfer all clients, either to their home or to hotel accommodation so they can self-isolate until they are able to safely resume their treatment".
But the female patient disputed that she was immediately offered hotel accommodation, describing a chaotic situation in which staff had no plan for where she could go.
"They were panicking, saying 'you guys have got to go'," she said. "I would describe it as an eviction."
While most of the other patients called family or friends to pick them up, the woman – who had recently been in a domestic violence situation – told staff she had nowhere to go.
"I had been living in boarding house, after leaving a domestic violence situation, and I had ended my tenancy [to come to rehab]" she said.
The woman says Uniting eventually offered her a place in crisis accommodation – somewhere the woman said was entirely non-conducive to detoxing, recovery and quarantining and could have led to her relapsing.
"I've been to those places, there's blood on the walls and people smoking ice outside my bedroom and banging on my door," she said.
Mr Alvis said that before being admitted into withdrawal centres, all clients were required to have a discharge plan including a safe place to leave at the end of their treatment.
But the woman said that although she had a distant relative in Melbourne she could stay with, he was immuno-compromised and she did not want to expose him to COVID-19 while she was required to isolate.
"If they had asked, 'where will you go if there's a case of COVID-19 in the facility?', I would have made it clear then that I would need a hotel," she said.
The woman, who says she has very little savings, scraped enough money together for a hotel room in the city for four days, and has now been given access to Department of Health and Human Services funding to pay for her accommodation until next Tuesday, after hours of phone calls pleading her case.
She has been told she may be re-enter the facility next week, but there is a chance the facility may require her to isolate for a further week.
"I have nowhere to go from next Tuesday. Am I going to be able to access funding for a week?" she said.
"How many times do I need to get tested before I can go and get the help I need?"
Mr Alvin said UnitingCare had been "strictly adhering to our approved COVIDSafe plan at all times", which included "stringent safety and hygiene measures within to protect the health of staff and clients". But he did not answer questions on why residents were allegedly able to roam the facility while awaiting results.
The Department of Health and Human Services confirmed all close contacts had been notified and that only one case had been linked to the facility so far.
In his daily press conference on Tuesday, Premier Daniel Andrews said while he was not aware of the situation at Re Gen, there was work being done to assess all vulnerable settings.
"There are plans in place, [and] a lot of hard work going on to try and assess and then manage and have a nimble and flexible response to each of those settings," he said. "Wherever there's vulnerability then obviously we have to be there first before the virus gets there, that's what's always driven us. It's pretty challenging though."
The woman said the ordeal had caused a great deal of distress at a time when she was already vulnerable and seeking help.
"I can't help but think all those other people who might have relapsed over this," she said.
If you or anyone you know needs support, call Lifeline on 131 114, or Beyond Blue's coronavirus mental wellbeing support service on 1800 512 348.