Helen Boocock

As of 7am today, Wednesday 23 March 2022, Metro North Health has moved back to Tier 3 of our COVID-19 response plan to allow us to focus on critical service delivery.

We have seen a significant increase in the number of staff who are away from the workplace due to having COVID or being a close contact. This is putting pressure on our ability to deliver some services.

This includes:

• All virtual outpatient appointments
• Urgent face-to-face appointments only where virtual not clinically appropriate
• All OPD patients must wear masks in waiting rooms
• Outsource activity as able
• Implement alternate models of care based on staffing availability
• Utilise STARS for planned care
• Only urgent elective surgery and procedures to deploy staff to COVID-related care in all hospitals except STARS.
• Repurpose surgical wards to medical wards as demand dictates
• Virtual meetings only
• Suspension of non-essential meetings
• No face-to-face training
• Essential training delivered virtually
• No volunteers or consumers engaged on site
• Students onsite must be fully vaccinated
• Minimise staff movement within wards and across facilities

We still remain in the high risk category of the PPE guidelines. Please check the requirements for your type of work. Surgical masks are the minimum requirement for administration and non-clinical areas.

Best wishes,

Helen Boocock
A/Executive Director
Surgical, Treatment and Rehabilitation Service (STARS)