![\"Metro](\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2020\/04\/mn-health-incident-controller2.jpg\" "\\"Metro")
<\/span><\/div>Dear Colleagues,<\/p>\n
I hope you are having a positive and productive week.<\/p>\n
I think it\u2019s safe to say that we as a health service are enjoying a successful week so far. And for those of you who are superstitious…touch wood. New cases of COVID-19 continue to decline, and the number of recovered patients is growing. This is a tremendous team effort and it makes me incredibly proud to see everyone in the workforce doing their part to reduce the number of infections.<\/p>\n
In today\u2019s update I want to discuss:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Restarting category 2 and 5 elective surgeries<\/li>\n
- New infection prevention procedure<\/li>\n
- Ensuring the wellbeing of staff<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Restarting category 2 and 5 elective surgeries <\/strong><\/p>\n
With the number of COVID-19 cases on the decline across Metro North, the decision has been made to restart category two and category five elective surgeries from the 27 April.<\/p>\n
Bookings for these surgeries will begin tomorrow. Surgeries will only be booked a week in advance to allow us to ensure we can closely monitor and ensure that we have adequate PPE stocks across Metro North. Gradually restarting elective surgeries will also allow us to continue to adhere to social distancing methods and enable appropriate infection control measures to assist in ensuring the wellbeing of our patients and staff. It will also ensure we are able to meet the clinical requirements of some of the patients who are relying on us for care and who have been patiently waiting for their surgery.<\/p>\n
New infection prevention procedure<\/strong><\/p>\n
A new procedure is now available to provide direction on the care of a deceased patient with confirmed or suspected COVID-19. Moving forward, please ensure this procedure is followed so we can maintain the health and wellbeing of our colleagues, patients and communities. This procedure is hosted on QHEPS<\/a>, a link is also available on our extranet page under infection prevention<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Ensuring the wellbeing of staff<\/strong><\/p>\n
At this time in the week it is important to make sure you and your teams are feeling confident and relatively well rested so that you don\u2019t burn out by the end of the week, whatever day that is. We all know the demand for our health services changes each day, so it is crucial our workforce is feeling ready and motivated to scale up or down as needed.<\/p>\n
In an environment where we provide services 24 hours a day, seven days a week and we don\u2019t really know what is looming around the corner, it is imperative that you look after your own health and well-being.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2020\/04\/wellness.jpg\")
For my own mental wellbeing, I find it can be useful to keep amusing thoughts or sayings in the back of my mind, especially when facing a tough or unusual challenge at work. I recently saw a quote which I keep referring to during the busier moments throughout this pandemic.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/metronorth.health.qld.gov.au\/extranet\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2020\/04\/doggo.jpg\")
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