Dear Colleagues,

We start the week again with no new cases of COVID-19 in Queensland!

Despite our great track record, the increase in cases we’ve seen in other parts of the country reminds us that the virus is still in our Australian community and we must continue to listen to the health advice. As we head into another week, I encourage you to stay committed to keeping your 1.5m distance from others and using the many hand hygiene stations across our facilities. Of course, if you are experiencing any symptoms whatsoever, please take them seriously and only leave home to get tested.

Today’s updates include:

• Update to hotspot locations
• Update to testing criteria
• Signage and COVID-19 collateral

Update to hotspot locations

From 21 June, Queensland’s list of declared COVID-19 hotspots has increased to include all 31 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in ‘Greater Melbourne’, as well as 5 bordering LGAs: Murrindindi, Mitchell, Moorabool, Macedon Ranges and Greater Geelong which make up ‘Greater Melbourne’. This means that Queenslanders returning from these areas will need to self-quarantine for 14 days.

As restrictions continue to ease, Queensland Health will continue to monitor the number of new cases across Australia and update the hotspot locations accordingly. The full list of locations can be found here.

Update to testing criteria

Updates were made to the CDNA National Guidelines last week to include ‘loss of smell or loss of taste’ as criteria for essential testing. This means if you or someone else are experiencing these symptoms alone, that’s reason enough to get tested. This update has been reflected in all relevant documentation on the Metro North COVID-19 extranet page and has been circulated to facility EOCs.

Signage and COVID-19 Collateral
Over the past few months our COVID-19 signage and collateral has required updating regularly as the pandemic evolved in Metro North and Queensland. The pandemic may be slowing in our region but as we know, it is going to be part of our new normal. As a result, we acknowledge the need to create a suite of COVID-19 signage and collateral that will not require constant updating and will withstand any small changes in the coming months. All Metro North Directorate EOCs will receive this suite in the coming month.

As many of our keen footy fans know, up to 10,000 spectators will be allowed at Queensland stadiums from this Saturday. While I was more excited about restaurants reopening, this move is a reassuring sign that our sacrifices over the past few months have paid off. For those of you with tickets, enjoy making lots of noise and supporting the teams you love again.  My husband is very excited, but he hasn’t let me know yet if the 10,000 includes the two of us – watch this space. I do question his excitability though. As many of you may know, he is a huge Broncos fan and while they’re not doing so well at the moment, it’s probably not something that you want to tell the world. But maybe his support is just what they need!

On another note, while it’s exciting that restrictions are being reviewed, there are many of us (including staff) who may still feel vulnerable. The simple question ‘R U OK?’ is sometimes all it takes to make sure that someone is alright. Those three simple words could change a person’s perspective on what is happening to them and can remind them that they matter and it’s okay to reach out. This pandemic has impacted so many of us and now is the time to make sure that we look out for others and stay kind to each other.

The picture to the right is of Ellie. Ellie is the beautiful Labrador of a friend of mine who also happens to be a Metro North employee. Ellie is sitting on the driveway patiently waiting for her niece Ruby (a brown lab) to come and visit. Remember, we all need at least one friend and it’s great that Metro North can not only a place of work, but one of friendship too.

Kind regards,

Adjunct Professor Alanna Geary
Metro North Incident Commander

Metro North HHS – Overview of Cases*

*With effect 22 June 2020
**Metro North has three recorded deaths (one person a return traveller into NSW, who passed away in NSW)
*** These numbers reflect the cases being managed by Metro North.