26 August 2020

Dear Colleagues,

The past few days have seen rapid changes across the health service and a spike in fever clinic presentations. Although the cluster of COVID-19 cases associated with the youth detention centre has not resulted in any additional cases in our catchment, we are taking precautions and following the advice of the Chief Health Officer.

I know moving to masks for non-clinical staff has been a big step, but it’s a precaution to keep us all safe and it’s a physical reminder that we need to keep up our other measures – handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes, staying home when sick (and getting tested if you have any symptoms), and physical distancing wherever possible. It’s important to follow the access requirements for your facility as well and limit movement across sites as much as possible. We have fully embraced virtual meetings this year and if you have drifted back to in person meetings, now is the time to switch to Teams or teleconferencing.

There was a massive amount of activity over the weekend as the restrictions came into place and more this week to respond. Thank you everyone involved in our response, especially fever clinic and emergency department staff have seen a huge number of people this week.

We have set up a pop-up fever clinic at Redcliffe Showgrounds to take some of the load. The team in Digital Metro North have done some heatmapping and the data shows that the Moreton South, Narangba and North Brisbane areas are the most active for presentations so that’s where we’ll focus additional testing resources for the moment. Particular thanks to our  Community and Oral Health Team. Thanks also to our Patient Support Services particularly our valued cleaning staff.

There’s a lot of information swirling at the moment so I want to remind you that our Metro North sources of truth are our staff COVID extranet site (accessible from home if you send yourself the link) and the daily Health Incident Commander messages. Our COVID vidcasts are also live from 11am-12pm and are an opportunity to ask questions of myself, the Health Incident Commander and the Chief Executive.

Dr Liz Rushbrook mentioned on yesterday’s vidcast that we need to adopt new habits to look after ourselves while wearing masks, especially for staff who aren’t familiar with them. Some people will naturally eat and drink less when wearing a mask, so keep an eye on each other and remind yourselves to hydrate and keep up your nutrition.

I also wanted to let you know that we are transitioning to a new system for interhospital transfers across the state in the coming weeks. For most staff there will be no difference to the process, but the form will look different. Your bed managers and patient flow nursing teams have been trained and can provide advice. If you have any questions, contact Clinical Excellence Queensland’s Healthcare Improvement Unit. Across Metro North, we average around 900 interhospital transfers each month including into, out of and between Metro North facilities.

Angie Dobbrick will be continuing in the role of Executive Director Caboolture and Kilcoy Hospitals and Woodford Health Service until the already planned recruitment can be finalised.

Stay safe, stay masked, and stay 1.5m away from each other wherever practical.

Regards,

Jackie Hanson
Chief Operating Officer