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Your email address will not be published.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

Patients with severe allergies should avoid Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, UK warns

People who have had serious allergic reactions in the past should not receive the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech, British health regulators have warned after two reactions were recorded on the first day of the UK’s much-heralded vaccination program. Trials of the vaccine did not find any serious safety concerns, yet two of... Read More

Nurses union calls for immediate stop to non-essential nursing home visits

  The Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) is calling for a temporary ban on all non-essential visits to chronically understaffed nursing homes, in a concerted, community-led effort to shield vulnerable older Australians from the COVID-19 global pandemic. ANMF Acting Federal Secretary, Lori-Anne Sharp, said to properly protect nursing home residents, the Government must provide... Read More

New report: Company contracted to administer vaccine to aged care residents only – not staff

The healthcare company tasked with rolling out the vaccine in Victoria has revealed it was never contracted to administer the vaccine to staff in aged care homes – only to give them leftovers once residents had received theirs. “Was it only ever a vaccine-dregs-for-staff arrangement?” Read More
Advertisement
Exit mobile version