3 August 2021

Dear colleagues,

This morning Metro North moved to Tier 2 in our COVID response plan. This reflects the level of change to our business as usual activities.

Under Tier 2, some of the key points include concierge staff directing anyone with a fever to the fever clinic, limiting movement around and between facilities, suspending non-essential meetings and training, and moving to virtual meetings.

Metro North remains on moderate risk PPE, with the addition of fever clinic staff and emergency department triage staff wearing N95 masks.

Virtual Ward

This afternoon we commenced admitting patients to our Virtual Ward. The ward is managed by Community and Oral Health and will support the care of our COVID-well cohort in quarantine. Anyone who becomes unwell will be admitted to one of our designated COVID hospitals, as needed. The Virtual ED is also available to support people in quarantine. Thank you to everyone involved in establishing the Virtual Ward.

Contact tracing update

The contact tracing list has been updated today with a large number of exposure sites. The current outbreak is a shifting situation. All staff should check the Queensland Health contact tracing website every day for new and updated information.

Working from home

With the lockdown extended until Sunday, anyone who can safely and effectively work from home is being supported to do so. Staff working at home should still make themselves available if needed to support areas such as concierge.

If you are working from home, please note that diverting your desk phone to your mobile takes up two phone lines. As phone lines at each campus are limited, this should only be done when absolutely necessary. Instead, please update your out of office or desk phone voicemail asking people to call your mobile or use Teams to contact you while working from home.

Vaccination

One of the few reasons people can leave home during lockdown is to get a COVID vaccination. While we can’t accept public walk-ins during the lockdown to avoid gatherings of people, we are still vaccinating priority groups including staff.

Today we stood up a vaccination clinic at Brisbane Airport specifically for airport workers. The clinic is running as an offshoot of the Doomben clinic.

If you have any symptoms at all, no matter how mild, please get tested and stay home. It is more important than ever to keep up our physical distancing, hand washing or sanitising, check in using the QR codes as you move around your facility, and use PPE appropriate to your situation.

Vidcast

Acting CE Jackie Hanson and I will be holding a staff COVID vidcast tomorrow at 11am.

You can watch this live. If you’re unable to watch live, the recording will be uploaded to QHEPS in the afternoon.

Regards,

Louise O’Riordan 
Metro North Incident Controller

Metro North HHS – overview of cases*

*As at 3/08/2021 at 1000

**Metro North Health has four recorded deaths (one person a return traveller into NSW, who passed away in NSW)   

*** These numbers reflect the cases being managed by Metro North Health.