![\"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
Queensland reported\u00a0an additional\u00a04 new cases overnight, bringing our State\u2019s\u00a0total number of\u00a0active cases to 28.\u00a0Like\u00a0yesterday, these new cases\u00a0are known contacts of existing cases, linked to the Queensland Corrective Services Academy. We do not\u00a0have\u00a0evidence\u00a0of\u00a0unknown transmission\u00a0happening in our community today, but we\u00a0have to\u00a0be alert to\u00a0the possibly of that\u00a0over coming weeks.<\/p>\n
Three of the\u00a0new cases are\u00a0people\u00a0who\u00a0live in the\u00a0same\u00a0household\u00a0as existing cases.\u00a0\u00a0The fourth case was a close contact of a known case.\u00a0\u00a0This highlights to me the very important strategies of physical distancing and limiting contact with others in your home or outside.\u00a0 Whilst the limit\u00a0for gatherings\u00a0is\u00a0currently\u00a010\u00a0(in your own home or in other areas), please treat this as an absolute maximum, and not a target!<\/p>\n
We do expect to see more cases over the coming days – with good management we would already know about these people and have them in quarantine.\u00a0\u00a0A massive shoutout to our\u00a0agile and high performing team of\u00a0contact tracers from the Public Health Unit. They are working at a rapid speed to identify, contact and inform these\u00a0people\u00a0of the next steps.<\/p>\n
Updated\u202flist\u202fof venues\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Overnight, Queensland Health has expanded its list of venues that confirmed COVID-19 cases have visited.\u00a0\u00a0The updated list is available at:\u00a0https:\/\/www.qld.gov.au\/health\/conditions\/health-alerts\/coronavirus-covid-19\/current-status\/contact-tracing<\/a>.<\/p>\n This\u00a0list is made public to identify casual contacts so they can closely monitor for symptoms and attend for testing if needed. If you are identified as a close contact, you will be contacted directly by the Public Health Unit\u00a0and given further information.<\/p>\n If you are a casual contact, even the mildest symptoms should trigger you to get a test. Please take this seriously.<\/p>\n Current activity in Metro North<\/strong><\/p>\n I\u2019d like to give you an update on what we\u2019ve been working on today.<\/p>\n One\u00a0of the confirmed cases of COVID-19 recorded\u00a0in\u00a0yesterday\u2019s numbers\u00a0attended\u00a0(before being aware they were a close contact, and before any symptoms developed)\u00a0a Child Care Centre in the Metro North catchment.\u00a0As a result,\u00a0we have been\u00a0working with our expert team at the Public Health Unit and the impacted facility to\u00a0communicate\u00a0with all families\u00a0and staff\u00a0about the next steps.<\/p>\n The centre is now closed for deep cleaning and anyone who attended the centre for more than 15 minutes\u00a0on the one day the case\u00a0attended have been identified as close contacts and are\u00a0now\u00a0required to go into quarantine and be tested.<\/p>\n We have extended the availability for testing to the household\u00a0members of the close contacts\u00a0and all families who usually attend the centre.<\/p>\n We understand that attending a fever clinic with children is a logistical challenge, so\u00a0we will be establishing a mobile\u00a0clinic,\u00a0close to the homes of the affected families,\u00a0which will begin testing tomorrow morning.\u00a0Thank\u00a0you\u00a0to our unstoppable team at Community and Oral Health\u00a0for working this one!\u00a0We\u00a0anticipate\u00a0about 400-500 tests\u00a0will be performed at this new location over coming days.<\/p>\n Until we learn the results of testing from the Child Care Centre, there is no requirements for anyone else outside of the identified close contacts and their household members to either quarantine or get tested.\u00a0 Of course, anyone who develops symptoms should get tested regardless of where\u00a0they\u00a0have been and who they have had contact with.\u00a0\u00a0We will keep you updated\u00a0on this matter\u00a0in the days to come.<\/p>\n Darling\u00a0Downs\u00a0\u2013 new\u00a0restricted area<\/strong><\/p>\n As a result of some of\u00a0the locations visited by a confirmed case,\u00a0the\u202frestrictions<\/a>\u202fthat currently apply to us in Metro North, and other\u00a0Local Government Areas<\/a>\u00a0(Metro South, West Moreton and Gold Coast), will be extended\u00a0the Darling Downs region\u00a0as of 8am tomorrow.<\/p>\n This means that the\u00a0Darling\u00a0Downs\u00a0area will now be subject to the same\u202fmovement and gathering restrictions<\/a>,\u202fhospital visitor\u202fdirections<\/a>\u00a0and\u202fextra\u202frestrictions in\u202faged care facilities<\/a>\u202fand\u00a0disability accommodation services and<\/a>\u00a0the enhanced use of PPE\u00a0within the Hospital and Health Service.\u202fThis may impact some of you who live or spend time in this area, so please familiarise yourself with these requirements.<\/p>\n Advice on masks in public\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n If you have been tuning into the daily press conferences with the\u00a0Chief Health Officer, you\u2019ll know she\u2019s been\u00a0encouraging\u00a0us to\u00a0really\u00a0step up our level of alertness\u00a0and actively practice\u00a0our key prevention strategies, such as physical distancing and consistent hand hygiene.<\/p>\n While these remain\u00a0the gold standard of COVID-19 prevention methods,\u00a0the CHO has encouraged us to\u00a0consider\u00a0wearing\u00a0masks if\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0in situations\u00a0where\u00a0physical\u00a0distancing is not possible, such as in a ride share,\u00a0or a busy space.<\/p>\n Masks that are ideal for these scenarios include:<\/p>\n Please leave our clinical masks in the workplace for use at work.<\/p>\n There is an abundance of caution\u00a0at the moment, but it is very sensible we stay risk averse. By staying cautious, we are preventing those numbers going up in the weeks to come, and the need to enact further restrictions.<\/p>\n Testing numbers<\/strong><\/p>\n The number of people getting tested has\u00a0settled to baseline levels\u00a0over the past few days, which has given our colleagues at\u00a0Queensland Pathology the\u00a0space to complete the backlog of testing. Current\u00a0turnaround\u00a0time for testing is about 1 day.<\/p>\n We anticipate we will continue to see a big push from the Chief Health Officer to be incredibly vigilant and\u00a0come forward for testing if you experience even the mildest of symptoms. Please listen to the advice. Our testing facilities\u00a0are equipped to respond to\u00a0testing demand as required.<\/p>\n Metro North activity \u2013 hotel quarantine\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n In the background of all this activity, I\u2019d like to remind you that\u00a0we have a large and\u00a0amazing team supporting over\u00a01,700 people\u00a0currently\u00a0in hotel quarantine.<\/p>\n As\u00a0you can imagine,\u00a0this a complex task! It\u00a0is an extraordinary effort to coordinate the support for these people who are in quarantine, ensuring they all have the right information at hand, delivering\u00a0periodic screening throughout their stay and\u00a0undertaking\u00a0pre-discharge testing.<\/p>\n Well done and thank you to the incredible team working around the clock to support our hotels and prevent\u00a0community\u00a0transmission.<\/p>\n Vidcasts\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Thank you to everyone who tuned in to our\u00a0vidcast\u00a0this morning. We are a 24\/7 service, so it\u00a0is\u00a0important we give those of you who work over the weekends the opportunity to chime in.<\/p>\n Remember the\u00a0vidcasts\u00a0will be reducing as of this week to Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with a special\u00a0additional\u00a0vidcast\u00a0on Tuesday\u00a0planned to help you with mask wearing tips and tricks.\u00a0Vidcasts\u00a0will continue operating\u00a0on at least one day\u00a0over the weekend until further notice.<\/p>\n Take care of you<\/strong><\/p>\n This is not a sprint \u2013 this is a marathon! This has\u00a0been said a lot but as we sit here in August,\u00a0several\u00a0months\u00a0on from learning about coronavirus,\u00a0and with continuous change on the horizon,\u00a0this statement resonates more than ever.<\/p>\n This situation is taking a toll on everyone\u00a0\u2013 some more than others.\u00a0Whether it\u2019s not being able to see our friends and family as much as we used to,\u00a0or simply feeling a level of concern.\u00a0Please continue to speak up if you\u00a0have questions or\u00a0need help, have a chat with a\u00a0colleague or reach out to our support services listed on the\u00a0staff wellbeing page.<\/a><\/p>\n Enjoy the rest of your weekend. As always,\u00a0you can be sure we will update you as new information becomes available.<\/p>\n Kind regards, Metro North HHS \u2013 Overview of Cases*<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n HHS<\/strong><\/td>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Virtual Ward \/ HITH \/ or similar<\/strong><\/td>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Deaths<\/strong><\/p>\n **<\/strong><\/td>\n Total cases managed by HHS (including recovered)<\/strong><\/p>\n ***<\/strong><\/td>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n #<\/strong><\/p>\n of clinics<\/strong><\/td>\n Presentations<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n ICU-NOT Ventilated<\/strong><\/td>\n ICU-Ventilated<\/strong><\/td>\n TOTAL^<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n *With effect 30 August 2020, 1000<\/p>\n **Metro North has three\u00a0recorded deaths\u00a0(one person a return traveller into NSW, who passed away in NSW)<\/p>\n *** These numbers reflect the cases being managed by Metro North.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nDr Elizabeth Rushbrook
\nMetro North Incident Commander<\/p>\n\n\n
\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Patients being managed by HHS<\/strong><\/td>\n FEVER Clinics<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n Total\u00a0In-patients<\/strong><\/td>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \n <\/td>\n ICU Pts<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n \n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Last 24 hrs<\/strong><\/td>\n \u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n \n \u202f\u202fMN TOTAL<\/td>\n 0<\/td>\n 0<\/td>\n 0<\/td>\n 0<\/td>\n 3<\/td>\n 342<\/td>\n 6<\/td>\n 657<\/td>\n 76,168<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n