Jul 31, 2020

NSW strengthens visitor and PPE guidance as COVID-19 risk escalates

Given the current risk of COVID-19 now in the community, NSW Health has extended requirements for face masks and visitation restrictions across new local government areas.

The state’s Chief Health Officer has added the local government areas of Waverley, Woollahra, Randwick and the eastern part of City of Sydney to the list of regions required to implement the following measures:

  • Any visitors to any residential aged care facility who have been in the following local government areas in the previous 14 days should be excluded from the facility: Waverley, Woollahra, Randwick, eastern part of City of Sydney, Parramatta, Fairfield, Liverpool, Campbelltown, Camden, Wingecarribee and Wollondilly.
  • All aged care staff who reside in the above local government areas or a NSW/VIC border community must wear a surgical mask while in the facility.
  • Staff and visitors who have visited any of the locations on the same date as a COVID-19 case (see updated list of venues and dates) should be excluded for a period of 14 days since their visit to the listed location.
  • All residential aged care staff who work in residential aged care facilities located within the above LGAs and in communities along the NSW/VIC border must wear a surgical mask while in the facility.
  • Residential aged care facilities in the above local government areas should not allow any visitors (visitors performing essential caring functions may be allowed but must wear a mask). In exceptional circumstances, seek advice from your local NSW Health public health unit on 1300 066 055.

The extension of these local government area restrictions will be in place until further notice.

Home Care Service providers who either live or work in any of these designated local government areas must also wear face masks while providing services.

Read the NSW Chief Health Officer’s letters to home care providers and residential providers.

This information was provided by the Department of Health.

Image: RyanJLane, iStock.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Why should some aged care staff receive retention bonus but not others?

  Laundry staff, cleaners and kitchen staff working in residential aged care will not receive the government’s retention bonus, even though home care workers performing similar duties are entitled to the payment. On 20 March, the government announced it will pay a ‘retention bonus’ to aged care workers to help providers keep staff employed through... Read More

When is it OK to take a rapid antigen test for COVID rather than lining up for a PCR swab?

Now we have access to PCR tests (known as RT-PCR, or reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, tests) and rapid antigen tests to detect SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID. So which test should you use? And what’s the difference? Read More

Aged care staff call in sick as resident dies from coronavirus

  It has been confirmed that a 95-year-old woman who died recently had coronavirus. The woman was a resident at the aged care facility where a staff member also tested positive for the virus. An 82-year old resident of the same facility, Baptist Care’s Dorothy Henderson Lodge, has been transferred to Ryde Hospital with coronavirus, and a... Read More
Advertisement
Exit mobile version