Published on 23 May 2022

With the onset of cooler weather, COVID cases continue to be high in the community and Victoria has recorded more cases of the flu so far this year than the whole of 2020 and 2021 combined. Our number of inpatients with COVID-19 and patients being managed through our COVID Positive Pathway remain stable. We have 180 staff currently furloughed which is double the number this time last week.

Staying COVIDSafe reminder

The same strategies we recommend for staying COVIDSafe also offer protection against flu and other respiratory viruses. Please continue to follow the advice below to protect yourself and avoid transmission of COVID-19 and flu.

  • Wear appropriate PPE – staff who wear an N95 anywhere, must wear it everywhere while staff in non-clinical areas must continue to wear surgical masks at a minimum
  • Maintain 1.5m from others including in break areas and during any clinical handover meetings
  • Sign into break areas using the QRG codes or breakroom logs
  • Conduct routine meetings and general education via electronic methods, avoiding face-to-face meetings wherever possible
  • Face-to-face mandatory training and essential skills-based training can be approved via local managers where participants are from the same site and involve 20 people or fewer. Further details can be found here.
  • If staff are permitted to gather in a face-to-face forum it is recommended that masks are not removed. If food or drink is being consumed then use of a rapid antigen tests is strongly recommended prior to attendance. Any gatherings of this nature must be approved via the relevant Divisional Director, Clinical Service Director or Executive Director
  • More information about keeping COVIDSafe at work can be found here.

Regards

John
Executive Director Operations (Acting)