Life under social isolation or mandatory "stay home orders".

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
25 July in Victoria

Key points from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton's latest coronavirus update
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has described the state's second wave of coronavirus as "incredibly stubborn" as he revealed 313 health workers and one ADF member are considered active cases.

While giving his latest update on the situation, Mr Andrews said the state's aged care facilities remain "really challenging" environments because of a high number of casual staff and residents being older and vulnerable.

Meanwhile, the state's Chief Medical Officer Brett Sutton said increasing restrictions may not lead to fewer cases.

Here are some of the other key points from the update on Saturday afternoon.

What are the latest figures?
Victoria has recorded 357 new infections overnight including five more deaths.

The Premier said there were 3,995 active cases:

including 313 health workers,
one member of the Australian Defence Force
and 536 in aged care facilities.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/coronavirus-australia-live-news-covid-19-blog-5-deaths-victoria/12491572

Victoria's coronavirus cases rise to 7,744 as five more people die from COVID-19
Premier Daniel Andrews said a woman in her 60s, a woman in 70s, a woman in her 80s, a woman in her 90s, and a man in his 80s are the latest deaths, taking the state's death toll to 61.

There are 229 people in hospital, including 42 people in intensive care.

HOSPITALISATIONS BY AGE (AS AT JULY 24):

* 2 people aged between five and 19

* 5 people aged between 20 and 29, 1 in ICU

* 7 people aged between 30 and 39, 4 in ICU

* 11 people aged between 40 and 49, 4 in ICU

*14 people aged between 50 and 59, 10 in ICU

* 19 people aged between 60 and 69, 13 in ICU

* 30 people aged between 70 and 79, 7 in ICU

* 55 people aged between 80 and 89, 2 in ICU

* 22 people are 90 and above
Asymptomatic Victorians who presented for a coronavirus test on Friday after having close contact with a confirmed infection told The Age they were turned away because they had not been approached by contact tracers.

New directives from the Department of Health and Human Services mean health workers at testing sites can only test asymptomatic residents who present a DHHS letter or text message.

'The following people are not currently eligible for asymptomatic testing: People living in previously identified 'hotspot suburbs' [and] people with letters from their employer, school or community group advising them to get tested,' the new DHHS guidelines state.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/teetering-on-the-brink-of-catastrophe-coronavirus-cases-soar/ar-BB179GDj?ocid=msedgntp

Of the almost 4,000 active cases across Victoria, 313 are in healthcare workers.

There are also 536 active cases in aged care across 38 facilities, with roughly 50 per cent of them being residents and 50 per cent staff.

Mr Andrews said Victoria would be out of lockdown "as soon as we possibly can".

"I can't predict what tomorrow's numbers will be like, or where we will be in a week, let alone towards the middle of next month," he said.

"We will get out of this quicker than we otherwise would if everyone just stays the course, doesn't let their frustration get the better of them, follows the rules, keeps doing the magnificent stuff that so many Victorians are doing, wearing masks, staying at home, understanding that this is something that we all have to deal with."
The latest cases are linked to a number of outbreaks in Metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria, including an additional case linked to St Basil's Home for the Aged and three more linked to Estia Health in Ardeer:
• 183 cases linked to Al Taqwa College
• 74 cases linked to St Basil's Home for the Aged in Fawkner
• 71 cases linked to Estia Health in Ardeer
• 60 cases linked to Menarock Life aged care in Essendon
• 44 cases linked to Estia Health in Heidelberg
• 49 cases linked to Glendale aged care in Werribee
• 23 cases linked to Baptcare Wyndham Lodge in Werribee
• 22 cases linked to Regis Aged Care in Brighton
• 80 cases linked to Somerville Retail Services in Tottenham
• 45 cases now linked to the Australian Lamb Company in Colac
• 21 cases linked to a Woolworths distribution centre in Mulgrave
• 10 cases linked to Star Track parcel distribution in Laverton
* 11 cases linked to Respite Services Australia in Moonee Ponds
* 9 cases linked to AMSSA in North Melbourne
* 6 cases linked to the Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre
* 5 cases have been liked to Steel Mains, a steel fabrication business in Somerton
* 4 cases have been linked to Waste Equipment & HIAB Services in Ardeer.
* 3 cases linked Diamond Valley Pork in Laverton North
* 3 cases linked to Sims Metal Management in Brooklyn
* 2 cases linked to Don KR Castlemaine

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/teetering-on-the-brink-of-catastrophe-coronavirus-cases-soar/ar-BB179GDj?ocid=msedgntp

Aged care with casual workers is 'really challenging'

There are more than 500 active COVID-19 cases in aged care centres, including 38 aged care settings.

Mr Andrews said it was roughly a 50-50 split of cases between health workers and residents.

He said the State Government is working in partnership with the Commonwealth Government and the private sector to put in place measures to curb the virus in aged care facilities, which has been largely driven by staff bringing the virus to work.

Mr Andrews said aged care centres were "really challenging" because they were staffed by many casual workers."We see that both in terms of the number of cases and also the number of people who are by the very nature of these settings frail and aged, many have underlying health issues," Mr Andrews said.

Measures put in place include:
Aged care settings 'very, very challenging'
Mr Andrews said aged care was a "very, very challenging environment" when it came to stopping the spread of the virus.

He said the Government was "working very closely" with the Federal Government and aged care providers to consolidate staff shifts into single sites to prevent "chains of transmission" being driven by staff.
"That obviously doesn't eliminate, but significantly reduces, the risk of the virus being transmitted by staff from one setting to another," he said.
"It is incredibly difficult to keep this out of aged care settings, particularly with such a transient and flexible and often insecure workforce."

Victoria's Covid-19 aged care disaster: 'this virus is like a fire out of control'
The disaster unfolding in Victoria’s aged care homes was “absolutely foreseeable”, one of the country’s foremost experts in aged care says.

Authorities knew some facilities had poorly trained workers and underpaid part-time or casual staff who had to move between homes to make a living. There’d been overwhelming evidence about the vulnerability of aged care residents internationally. In Sydney, there was the outbreak of Covid-19 at Newmarch House. It was all documented.

“We got this wrong from the very start,” says Prof Joseph Ibrahim, the head of the health law and ageing research unit at Monash University. The result, he and other experts say, is what is unfolding in Victoria.

The vast majority of aged care homes in Australia are privately-run and regulated by the federal government. There are now dozens of facilities with multiple cases. In total, there were almost 450 cases on Thursday across some 35 sites.

How did this happen? In early April, after Covid-19 had ripped through the Dorothy Henderson Lodge Aged Care home in Sydney, the regulator of aged care facilities decided to assess how prepared the country’s other providers were for an outbreak. They launched an online survey asking all facilities to declare if they were ready.

Of the 2,638 residential homes that responded, 99.5% told the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission that they were ( ready )
<< yet no one checked by carrying out random unscheduled spot checks and inspection to confirm , Victoria's aged citisens are now paying the price >>

That was reassuring, but it was nonsense, says Ibrahim. The survey was about as useful as a police officer coming up to ask you if you were doing anything wrong.

“The survey was nice to do but asking people questions that they’re not aware of and not capable of answering and you’re the regulator [means] it’s not going to be a hand-on-heart moment, we’re in trouble, please visit us and give us a sanction.”
The critical government failure, says Ibrahim, was that while in the early days of the pandemic the focus was on a perceived shortage of acute care beds, ventilators and personal protective equipment, there was little obvious focus on aged care.

“In March, we had all of the stuff come out in Italy, Spain, France, England and the start of New York, all of that information told us that older people died far more in terms of fatality rates, and the highest fatality rate was for aged care or long-term residents”.

One report found that between 42% and 57% of deaths from the virus in various European countries were happening in care homes. The estimate is that, so far, about a 1/3 of fatalities in Australia are linked to aged care. In Canada, it’s 85%.For residents and their families, Melbourne’s outbreak is “terrifying”.

Ibrahim says the aged care outbreaks were predictable and state and federal governments are now playing catchup.
The wearing of face masks for all aged care workers was only made law on 13 July and then only in the locked-down Melbourne and Mitchell shire areas.

The interim report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care released in October 2019 laid bare the systemic problems in the sector – they were all known before the pandemic. A recent report found about 20% of facilities did not meet standards in “safe and effective personal and clinical care”.
<< Shelved and ignored when the sector cried "poor" and claimed was unable to implement recommendations because too expensive .>>

About 70% of the aged care workforce are personal care workers, often with a six-week certificate course as their qualification, with scant knowledge about deadly infection control. It is known that trained nurses have been a declining percentage of the workforce. A large percentage of the workforce are casuals or part-time workers, needing to work at multiple locations to make ends meet.

The Health Workers Union says 55% of their members in aged care work part-time, and 5% are casuals. Aged care workers often receive about $22 an hour, says union secretary Diana Asmar, and stopping them working a second job would drive many into poverty. The federal government, concerned about workers spreading the virus, is expected to announce a ban on working at multiple facilities next week.

With staff falling ill, there is a concern there won’t be enough workers in aged care facilities. The government has provided $234.9m for a retention bonus for workers in aged care facilities and in-home care, although the union says it should be provided for all workers including cleaners, kitchen staff and receptionists, not just carers and nurses.

The union, like Ibrahim, claims these problems have been known for years.

“If the aged care system was not working under usual circumstances, why on earth would anyone think that it would be able to ratchet up to perform extraordinarily well with this new threat?” Ibrahim says.

He argues the government should have months ago announced that every aged care home in the country would be case managed. The response has been too reactive.

Neither the state nor the federal government supports automatically transferring Covid-19 positive residents to hospital – instead saying it needs to be done on a case-by-case basis. The only state to enforce blanket hospitalisation so far is South Australia.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-s-covid-19-aged-care-disaster-this-virus-is-like-a-fire-out-of-control/ar-BB179N5L?ocid=msedgntp

The Federal and Victorian governments will establish a response centre to coordinate efforts to curb the worsening situation in aged care facilities across the state.

The new centre will be jointly managed by Emergency Management Australia, Emergency Management Victoria and VicHealth.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said it would be located at the Victorian State Control Centre and draw together the Australian Defence Force (ADF), Federal and State governments, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner, clinical leaders, geriatric support and emergency management.

"Its tasks will include quality control workforce provisions, prevention of outbreaks, rapid response, supporting provider communications to families and others," Mr Hunt said.

Workers consolidating shifts to a single site instead of working in many places, to reduce the risk of spreading the virus
The Commonwealth providing financial support to workers who are disadvantaged because they can only work in one place

The State Government paying $1,500 for a person in insecure work that tests positive and $300 a day when a worker gets tested and is waiting for their result

Reduced visitor numbers
Asymptomatic testing for staff
Additional training in infection control
Victorian Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said the average age of residents in aged care is close to 90 years old.

"The severity of illness in that population is very significant," Professor Sutton said.
"Coronavirus is a very serious infection to get. The key is not having the virus introduced in the first place. Once you have an outbreak, their vulnerability puts them in danger."

Medically trained are getting sick
Professor Sutton said Saturday's figures indicated "a really challenging epidemic curve to overcome".
"I am hopeful and really keen to see what the effects of universal mask-wearing might be," Professor Sutton said.

He said treating the 229 people in hospital with the virus was a challenge but "relatively manageable".
"At some point, we will see a stabilisation in the active number of cases in Victoria, if our new cases remain stable. But it will continue to increase in terms of the admissions in acute settings for a couple of weeks after that," he said.

An Australian Defence Force officer who was supporting testing in Craigieburn has also tested positive to the virus.

Professor Sutton said it was not clear how the ADF member caught the virus and it would be investigated.

He said the case highlighted how infectious the disease was, when an ADF staffer who was medically trained and wearing personal protection equipment (PPE) tested positive.
Professor Sutton said the case was being investigated.
"Even those medically trained individuals using PPE and who have been trained in it and have been given all the appropriate PPE, can be at risk," he said.
"Sometimes it is in the donning or the doffing, or the washing of hands before and afterwards … It speaks to the absolute infectiousness of this virus."

Mr Andrews said he was grateful for the work of the ADF.
"Even with the full PPE, layer upon layer, no PPE can reduce the risk to zero. But ADF are playing a really important part, and we are very grateful to them, " he said.

Why stage 4 restrictions won't help?
Professor Sutton says this wave of infection is "not like the first wave".
"The numbers have remained stubbornly high," he said.

This week, people in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire must don a face mask when outside their homes, the latest measure to reduce infections.
"I am hopeful and really keen to see what the effects of universal mask wearing might be," he said.

Many people are speculating the State Government may need to tighten restrictions, but Professor Sutton says the focus remains on preventing transmission in aged care centres and workplaces like warehouse distribution centres and food production facilities.
"The very places where we are seeing outbreaks, the very places where we are seeing transmission, are the places that would remain open if we went to a stage four," he said.
"We shouldn't pretend that a really broad shutdown of industry will address where we are seeing the transmission."

Beware of scammers
People are being warned to be on the lookout for scammers wanting bank details.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) states its Scamwatch program has received 3,550 scam reports mentioning the coronavirus.
The Premier said reports of scammers posing as officials were "an ugly feature of our modern world" and "awful".
"No member of the contact tracing team is going to be asking for your credit card or your bank details," he said.

He did note if you have claimed the Government's $300 or $1,500 payment, you will be asked for those details.

Mr Andrews said he was confident that between the Health Department, Consumer Affairs Victoria and potentially police, the matters would be investigated.

Army move into Colac to help contain spread from abattoir
Meanwhile, the Australian Defence Force has arrived in Colac in Victoria's south-west to help with contact tracing efforts.

The number of active coronavirus cases in the town jumped from zero to 45 in just over a week after an outbreak at the Australian Lamb Company.

The abattoir is the town's largest employer with about 700 employees.

An incident control centre has been set up in the regional town to support contact tracing, testing and to ensure the community receives information about the evolving situation.
Three ADF members are helping with logistics, and up to 20 are expected to arrive on Monday to support a re-testing blitz.

Mark Gunning, from the Country Fire Authority, is part of the incident control team and says it will also provide food, relief packages and health support to those in quarantine.

"The idea of the [incident control] team is to bring all those parties together, to work collaboratively, so there's not ambiguity in messaging," he said.

"[Then] people can be really clear on what they need to be doing to stay safe."

ADF members will consist primarily of medical staff and be supported by general soldiers.

Mr Gunning said more people in the community were wearing masks, adding that it was vital everyone socially distanced and maintained good hygiene.

"Please, if there's a reason why you've got a test, if you've got symptoms or you've had a close contact, if you get a test go home, stay home," he said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/victoria-coronavirus-latest-cases/12491948
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/key-points-from-victorian-premier-daniel-andrews-and-chief-health-officer-brett-sutton-s-latest-coronavirus-update/ar-BB17avoo?ocid=msedgntp

Serco stands down Melbourne call-centre staff without pay on one day's notice
<<fears of new clusters in call centres full of casual and parttime staff who have minimal working conditions and no right to demand improvements in OHS settings to make their workplaces covidsafe>>
Multinational outsourcing giant Serco gave staff at a Melbourne call centre just 24 hours’ notice before standing them down without pay indefinitely because of a Covid-19 outbreak, after they had spent months helping Australia’s surging numbers of unemployed.

The outbreak forced the closure on Monday of the Mill Park call centre in Melbourne, which helps fulfil the company’s Centrelink call centre contract with Services Australia.

Documents obtained by the Guardian show Serco has stood down all of its workers indefinitely.
The company wrote to staff on Wednesday telling them they would be stood down without pay from Thursday.

“The stoppage of work means that you are now stood down from work in accordance with section 524 of the Fair Work Act 2009,” Serco’s contract manager, June Meldrum, said in the letter.

“You will receive your ordinary pay in accordance with any confirmed shifts for today. For full time or part time staff, unpaid stand down will commence from Thursday 23 July 2020 onward. These people may, however, elect to utilise their annual leave entitlements during this period.

“Casual staff will not be rostered from Thursday 23 July 2020 until further notice.”

No mention was made of working from home, though the company has said it is attempting to work with its government client to institute such arrangements.

The letter told staff they remained “valued” by Serco.

“I confirm that while you are stood down, you remain a valued employee of Serco. However, we of course understand that you may need to make other arrangements during this period.”

A Serco spokesman said the company was working as hard as it could to have staff back performing essential government services “as soon as possible”.

“This is obviously an extremely difficult time for our Mill Park team, and we are doing all we can to safeguard our employees’ health and safety following the directive given to us by [the Department of Health and Human Services],” the spokesman said.

One source suggested to the Guardian that staff had continued to hot-desk throughout the pandemic, posing an unnecessary risk.

The company denied that claim. It also stridently denied any suggestion that the six cases it had recorded among call centre workers in July had been a result of staff-to-staff transfer.

Related: Home affairs fought for three years to stop Serco detention centre manual release

A spokesman said Serco was conducting temperature checks of staff, had placed perspex screens in workstations, employed “full sanitation protocols”, offered face masks, and conducted deep cleans.

It closed the centre last weekend voluntarily but decided to keep it closed on advice from the DHHS.

Serco said the department deemed that all employees of the call centre were “close contacts” of known cases, meaning they were required to self-isolate for the quarantine period and be tested.

Services Australia said the closure of the call centre would not affect its services.

It described the Serco closure as “precautionary”.

“Our services are not affected as Services Australia’s call centre network spans across the nation, including thousands of additional staff taking calls and processing claims as part of our coronavirus response,” the department said in a statement.

“Serco took a precautionary step to immediately close the Mill Park site and will work with the Victoria government’s Department of Health and Human Services to ensure the workplace is safe before reopening.”

The department also said it required all contractors to strictly adhere to the health authority requirements of the relevant states and territories.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/serco-stands-down-melbourne-call-centre-staff-without-pay-on-one-day-s-notice/ar-BB178dp8?ocid=msedgntp

Melbourne hospitals braces for potential doubling in COVID-19 caseload next week
Melbourne hospitals are bracing for a surge in coronavirus patients after confidential modelling by the city's major hospitals suggested cases could almost double over the next five days.
Yesterday, seven deaths and more than 300 cases were recorded in Victoria in what was the state's deadliest day.

The situation at aged care facilities continues to spiral out of control with five of those deaths and more than 200 infections aged care residents.

Aged care in Victoria is looming as a coronavirus disaster — brace for it to get worse
Brace for it to get far worse from here.

In the past fortnight, 34 Victorians have died with COVID-19, more than doubling the state's death toll from the virus.

But aged care stands as a looming disaster for the state, after a dramatic growth in infections across a growing list of nursing homes.

The total number of infected residents of nursing homes nationwide has quadrupled since the start of the month, from 71 to 292 and counting.

Almost the same number of nursing home staff have also been infected.
25july-aged-care-ticking-bomb.png

Residential aged care homes have been among the deadliest environments in this pandemic.

According to the Federal Government, at least 48 people living in residential aged care homes have died with COVID-19, as well as a further four people receiving in-home care services.

Before the current outbreaks in Victoria began, of the 71 aged care residents infected, 31 died and 40 recovered.

That is, 44 per cent of infected residents didn't survive, a horrific statistic.

As of Friday, there were 242 residents who were fighting the virus.

There's a strong likelihood the next few weeks will be grim.

We've seen this before
In the first wave of the pandemic, two serious nursing home outbreaks devastated Anglicare's Newmarch House and the Dorothy Henderson Lodge.

There were 71 infections among staff and residents at Newmarch House alone, and 17 deaths.

Later potential crises in aged care managed to be avoided, including at a nursing home in Rockhampton.
But now there are cases linked to at least 40 aged care homes in Victoria, and some of the outbreaks rival Newmarch House in size.
With many homes still curtailing family visits due to the threat of infection, the virus has typically been brought in by staff inadvertently.

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission is examining how nursing homes manage the crisis and has already taking compliance action, including against Menarock last week.

"The Commission took regulatory action in relation to Menarock Life Essendon Aged Care Services because of significant concerns about the provider's response to the outbreak and the safety, health and wellbeing of the residents at the service," commissioner Janet Anderson said last week.

"Menarock Life Aged Care Services has notified the Commission that it has accepted the requirements imposed by the Commission under the regulatory action."

The regulator has also taken regulatory action in relation to Newmarch House.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/coronavirus-aged-care-deaths-victoria/12491538
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/melbourne-hospitals-braces-for-potential-doubling-in-covid-19-caseload-next-week/ar-BB17ahp0?ocid=msedgntp

Mask wearing in Victoria is 'essentially Stage (Level) 4'
Mr Andrews said the wearing of masks is essentially the state in "stage four lockdown".

Health authorities now encouraging mask use
Nick Talley, Editor-in-Chief of the Medical Journal of Australia, says evidence now shows that masks help stop the spread of COVID-19.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/health-authorities-now-encouraging-mask-use/vi-BB17a1S9?ocid=msedgntp

"If they are worn by everybody then we may not need to go further," he said.

"We cannot rule out going further with rule changes, but it is a big game changer, potentially, and I cannot tell you how proud I was to travel in here this morning and see literally every single person on my journey into the office from the middle ring suburbs in the south-east, wearing a mask. It is just a fantastic thing.

"And while people were a bit concerned and that was a bit of talk back and forth about whether it would happen, it is happening, it makes you proud, it is a significant step we can all take to potentially slow and limit the spread of this virus and then drive down case numbers."

He said Victoria Police is "out there" and will fine people who don't wear masks and will take action against you.

"By following these rules, and getting to the other side of the second wave," Mr Andrews said.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said the second wave is not like the first.

"The numbers have remained stubbornly high, haven't gone up significantly, haven't gone down significantly in the last week," Dr Sutton said.

He said if the state went to a formal stage four lockdown, the areas where there are significant outbreaks, such as aged care homes and schools, are the places which would remain open.

"So these are the areas we need to focus on, and we shouldn't pretend that a really broad shutdown of industry will address where we are seeing the transmission," Dr Sutton said.

"We need to really focus on how do you prevent transmission occurring in aged care, and the premier has listed some interventions we are working on there stop the spread for healthcare settings…food distribution centres, other warehouse distribution centres and food production facilities."

He said mask usage is essential to work towards stopping the spread and is hopeful of the results.

"But I do think, you know, the fact that we have got universal mask usage now, really, for the community, both going out of your home but also in all of the workplaces that people are attending, that is something that will address both these high risk settings, but also every other workplace," he said.
Mr Andrews said the current situation is a crisis, and he is working closely with the Federal Government to beat the outbreak, especially in aged care homes.

He said he is working closely with the Prime Minister for the "really challenging setting".

"We see that both in terms of the number of cases and also the number of people who are by the very nature of these settings frail and aged," Mr Andrews said.

"Many have underlying health issues. It is a very, very challenging environment, and I want to send my support and assurance to all families and staff, all of those involved in aged care, that many different steps have been taken, processes have been put in place."

He said state and federal governments, with the union, are looking at staff shifts and how the spread of the virus can be stopped.

Victorians urged to wear a mask while exercising
Melburnians doing exercise are being urged to wear a mask, despite being exempt from the new rules.

The state's Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said wearing a mask is "just a good idea all round", especially as people expel more air droplets, which could lead to the spread of coronavirus.

Rules this week came into place making face masks mandatory.

"We have made an exemption for people who are doing strenuous exercise, but I would say, if you can wear a mask when you are cycling, or when you are running, wear a mask, absolutely," Dr Sutton said.

"When you are exercising, you do breathe out more forcefully. But we have made consideration of the fact that for some people, doing strenuous exercise, they couldn't manage it with a mask on. So they needed that exemption.

"It doesn't mean that we wouldn't recommend a mask under normal circumstances, if they can manage it. But for some people, it makes breathing difficult.

"I am aware of people who can run a marathon in a mask. If you are one of those people, absolutely, wear a mask, running, cycling or anything else that is strenuous.

"But the exemption is there for the people who cannot manage that exercise otherwise."

Melburnians are allowed outside to exercise as one of the four reasons they can leave their homes.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victorians-urged-to-wear-a-mask-while-exercising/ar-BB17asOf?ocid=msedgntp

Masks part of the Melbourne look for a long time to come
Melburnians may need to wear masks on public transport and in other busy public spaces until there is a widely available vaccine for coronavirus.

University of NSW epidemiologist Mary-Louise McLaws said wearing face masks would be a significant cultural shift for Victorians, but a necessary means of protection in the battle against COVID-19.

"Wearing face masks is something that should become a part of people's everyday lives until a vaccine is found or this virus stops being a threat," the World Health Organisation adviser said.

Until Victoria drives cases down to single digits for at least a fortnight, those living in Melbourne or the Mitchell Shire should not go out in public without their nose and mouth covered, Professor McLaws said.

Police in Melbourne have been told to wear masks while working in their stations, it emerged late on Wednesday.
"Victoria Police has recommended staff wear face masks within controlled Victoria Police workplaces where physical distancing cannot be maintained, including where no contact with the public occurs," members have been advised.

As debate mounted on whether the state could achieve elimination of the virus, Victoria's Chief Health Officer, Brett Sutton, said on Wednesday that mandatory mask-wearing "shouldn’t be off the table", but he warned against police punishing people who could not access a mask.
<< Cops are actually providing free surgical masks people who have not been able to afford or find masks for sale for reasonable prices ( yes the price gougers are active AGAIN , including shamefully chemist chains and local chemist shops , hardware shops and supermarkets ) with warnings in Victoria .>>

"It’s a risk not to have them, especially with the transmission going on in Melbourne," Professor Sutton said.

People entering Victorian courts and tribunals are now strongly encouraged to wear face masks with security staff handing out disposable versions.

Is the aim elimination ( extinction of ) Covid19 or suppression of community transmission to a defacto elimination scenario ( single figure cases per week statewide ).

Asked whether Victoria should switch to an elimination approach to the virus, Professor Sutton said: "I'd love elimination, but it's not the right time to be assessing whether that is feasible right now."

When pressed on the likelihood of a harsher stage four lockdown in Victoria, Professor Sutton said any potential hardening of restrictions would be targeted at areas creating the biggest problems.

"If we’re seeing a focus in a particular setting, in a particular cohort of people, related to particular activities, that would be the focus of stage four restrictions," he said.

Professor Bill Bowtell, of UNSW's Kirby Institue for infection and immunity said, however, that the suppression strategy in Victoria was failing and called for the adoption of an elimination strategy.

He also questioned why Victorians weren't encouraged to wear masks sooner when infections began to climb in March.

“Do we keep on putting people in lockdown or do we go for hard lockdown and aim for eradication, which can be done and has been done?” asked Professor Bowtell, who helped lead Australia's response to the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.

"New Zealand did it and they haven't had community transmission in 70 days. This is a virus, it's not a supernatural zombie. It transmits between people so you need to separate people."

Tony Blakely, a University of Melbourne epidemiologist, is also pushing for Victoria to move into a hard lockdown.

“We know from lots of international experience now, the best one being Wuhan, you can basically knock this virus out of the park if you decide to lock down hard," Professor Blakely said.

"Given that we’ve already gone into a lockdown in Melbourne, we should turn something that depresses us into an an opportunity. In the six weeks of hard lockdown we could actually achieve elimination."

For this to work, the "loose definition" of what essential workers are must be tightened and Victoria would mirror the "New Zealand prototype", Professor Blakely said.

Places such as abattoirs, which have battled multiple outbreaks, should close for at least a month, along with schools, educational facilities and every business except essential services such as supermarkets, pharmacies and medical clinics.

However, Dr Nick Coatsworth, the federal Deputy Chief Medical Officer, has warned that elimination would be a risky strategy.

"The risk elimination creates is a false sense of security that may diminish the community engagement with widespread testing and lead to a downsizing of the enhanced public health response, based on an assumption “we have got rid of the virus once and for all in our part of the world”.

University of Melbourne epidemiologist Professor John Mathews argued that it might be too soon to aim for zero.

"It is impossible to go for elimination without suppressing it first," he said. “At the moment, one couldn’t rule out the possibility that in a week or 10 days' time, we’ve got a disaster on our hands."

Griffith University infectious diseases expert Professor Nigel McMillan said even if the virus was eliminated, Australia must "still deal with the rest of the world in some manner".

"Elimination won’t be a golden answer to your economic woes, especially in a country like New Zealand or Australia that relies on tourism," he said.

Professor McMillan said for the state to avoid future outbreaks, Victorians would have to change their way of thinking and remain vigilant not only during the lockdown period, but for the months or even years ahead.

"There are probably quite a few people who have said 'it’s just one thing, it’s just a small get-together with my family,’ but of course it does matter. We’ve got to eliminate that sort of attitude," Professor McMillan said. "It only takes one or two people to not do the right thing and it’s away."
https://www.smh.com.au/national/masks-part-of-the-melbourne-look-for-a-long-time-to-come-20200715-p55c5i.html
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/mask-wearing-in-victoria-is-essentially-stage-four/ar-BB17a5Rm?ocid=msedgdhp#image=1

Victorian police crack down on rule flouting
Victoria Police have warned they will crack down hard on any Victorian's flouting lockdown measures.

It comes as video emerged of a woman intentionally trying to cross a border checkpoint without giving a legitimate reason.

Over the past 24 hours the police have conducted 5,300 spot checks and dished out 101 fines and 63 warnings.

Police are now being assisted by the Australian Defence Force with contact tracing and door knocking procedures.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victorian-police-crack-down-on-rule-flouting/ar-BB179dOy?ocid=msedgntp

'Stressing me out beyond belief': Government clarifies advice on maternity visits
The government has changed its advice to expectant mothers and clarified that there will be no limit on how long partners can remain with new mothers in the hours after they give birth.

Expectant parents were left confused and alarmed after the state government said on Thursday that as part of measures to stem the spread of COVID-19, partners or a support person could stay at the hospital for only two hours after new mothers were moved from the birthing suite to postnatal care.

"From today, the rules that apply to maternity situations is that the woman is able to have her partner or support person for as long as is required for the entire labour and birth of their newborn baby and then their partner or support person is able to be with them for a two-hour visit after the baby is born," Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said at a press conference on Thursday.

"This addresses some of the concerns we have seen in relation to at least one health service that I'm aware of in the last week. We have tried to strike the balance there between compassion and safety."

he position was confirmed by Ms Mikakos' department after the media conference with a statement saying that ''on the day of the birth, once the mother and newborn move to the postnatal ward, a partner or support person can stay for up to a further two hours.

''A partner or support person can then visit once per day for a maximum of two hours every subsequent day the mother is in hospital."

However, late on Thursday night, Ms Mikakos said partners can stay as long as required on the day of the birth, but visits on the days after the birth will be capped at two hours.

"The only thing that's changed is a pregnant woman giving birth can now have one visitor when before it was two," she wrote on Twitter just before 11pm on Thursday.

"Her partner/support person can stay for as long as they wish during labour and birth and after the baby is born."

Visiting restrictions will be tightened across Victorian hospitals and aged care facilities as case numbers continue to rise among healthcare workers, nursing home staff and residents.

Only one person can visit hospital patients and aged care home residents for one hour a day, but there will be exceptions for parents with children in hospital and visitors of patients in palliative care.

Other exceptions include nominated mental health supporters, people providing language support and people visiting patients in life-threatening situations.

"This addresses some of the concerns we have seen in relation to at least one health service I'm aware of in the past week," said Ms Mikakos on Thursday. "We ask for Victorians' understanding at this challenging time."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/melbourne/stressing-me-out-beyond-belief-government-clarifies-advice-on-maternity-visits/ar-BB176Vu7?ocid=msedgntp

More Victorians taking up ocean swimming during lockdown
Many of the swimmers say cold water immersion has helped them deal with the stress of lockdown, and been a welcome distraction from the pandemic.
<< this is something along the lines of an immune system booster suggested a few times on MEDCram >>
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/more-victorians-taking-up-ocean-swimming-during-lockdown/vi-BB17a3UD?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
kingofnobbys":6333xdvk said:
25 July in Victoria

Victorian government launch advertising campaign
The Victorian government has launched a confronting new advertising campaign to try to stop the spread of coronavirus.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-victorian-government-launch-advertising-campaign/vi-BB17atZW?ocid=msedgntp
<< NOT CONFRONTING ENOUGH IMO , bring back a revamped repurposed Grim Reaper advertising campaign . Scare the hell out of everyone to get the message across , show body bags , mass graves, what ever it takes to get through some very thick Victorians' skulls .>>

Key points from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton's latest coronavirus update
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has described the state's second wave of coronavirus as "incredibly stubborn" as he revealed 313 health workers and one ADF member are considered active cases.

While giving his latest update on the situation, Mr Andrews said the state's aged care facilities remain "really challenging" environments because of a high number of casual staff and residents being older and vulnerable.

Meanwhile, the state's Chief Medical Officer Brett Sutton said increasing restrictions may not lead to fewer cases.

Here are some of the other key points from the update on Saturday afternoon.

What are the latest figures?
Victoria has recorded 357 new infections overnight including five more deaths.

The Premier said there were 3,995 active cases:

including 313 health workers,
one member of the Australian Defence Force
and 536 in aged care facilities.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/coronavirus-australia-live-news-covid-19-blog-5-deaths-victoria/12491572

Victoria's coronavirus cases rise to 7,744 as five more people die from COVID-19
Premier Daniel Andrews said a woman in her 60s, a woman in 70s, a woman in her 80s, a woman in her 90s, and a man in his 80s are the latest deaths, taking the state's death toll to 61.

There are 229 people in hospital, including 42 people in intensive care.

HOSPITALISATIONS BY AGE (AS AT JULY 24):

* 2 people aged between five and 19

* 5 people aged between 20 and 29, 1 in ICU

* 7 people aged between 30 and 39, 4 in ICU

* 11 people aged between 40 and 49, 4 in ICU

*14 people aged between 50 and 59, 10 in ICU

* 19 people aged between 60 and 69, 13 in ICU

* 30 people aged between 70 and 79, 7 in ICU

* 55 people aged between 80 and 89, 2 in ICU

* 22 people are 90 and above
Asymptomatic Victorians who presented for a coronavirus test on Friday after having close contact with a confirmed infection told The Age they were turned away because they had not been approached by contact tracers.

New directives from the Department of Health and Human Services mean health workers at testing sites can only test asymptomatic residents who present a DHHS letter or text message.

'The following people are not currently eligible for asymptomatic testing: People living in previously identified 'hotspot suburbs' [and] people with letters from their employer, school or community group advising them to get tested,' the new DHHS guidelines state.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/teetering-on-the-brink-of-catastrophe-coronavirus-cases-soar/ar-BB179GDj?ocid=msedgntp

Of the almost 4,000 active cases across Victoria, 313 are in healthcare workers.

There are also 536 active cases in aged care across 38 facilities, with roughly 50 per cent of them being residents and 50 per cent staff.

Mr Andrews said Victoria would be out of lockdown "as soon as we possibly can".

"I can't predict what tomorrow's numbers will be like, or where we will be in a week, let alone towards the middle of next month," he said.

"We will get out of this quicker than we otherwise would if everyone just stays the course, doesn't let their frustration get the better of them, follows the rules, keeps doing the magnificent stuff that so many Victorians are doing, wearing masks, staying at home, understanding that this is something that we all have to deal with."
The latest cases are linked to a number of outbreaks in Metropolitan Melbourne and regional Victoria, including an additional case linked to St Basil's Home for the Aged and three more linked to Estia Health in Ardeer:
• 183 cases linked to Al Taqwa College
• 74 cases linked to St Basil's Home for the Aged in Fawkner
• 71 cases linked to Estia Health in Ardeer
• 60 cases linked to Menarock Life aged care in Essendon
• 44 cases linked to Estia Health in Heidelberg
• 49 cases linked to Glendale aged care in Werribee
• 23 cases linked to Baptcare Wyndham Lodge in Werribee
• 22 cases linked to Regis Aged Care in Brighton
• 80 cases linked to Somerville Retail Services in Tottenham
• 45 cases now linked to the Australian Lamb Company in Colac
• 21 cases linked to a Woolworths distribution centre in Mulgrave
• 10 cases linked to Star Track parcel distribution in Laverton
* 11 cases linked to Respite Services Australia in Moonee Ponds
* 9 cases linked to AMSSA in North Melbourne
* 6 cases linked to the Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre
* 5 cases have been liked to Steel Mains, a steel fabrication business in Somerton
* 4 cases have been linked to Waste Equipment & HIAB Services in Ardeer.
* 3 cases linked Diamond Valley Pork in Laverton North
* 3 cases linked to Sims Metal Management in Brooklyn
* 2 cases linked to Don KR Castlemaine

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/teetering-on-the-brink-of-catastrophe-coronavirus-cases-soar/ar-BB179GDj?ocid=msedgntp

Aged care with casual workers is 'really challenging'

There are more than 500 active COVID-19 cases in aged care centres, including 38 aged care settings.

Mr Andrews said it was roughly a 50-50 split of cases between health workers and residents.

He said the State Government is working in partnership with the Commonwealth Government and the private sector to put in place measures to curb the virus in aged care facilities, which has been largely driven by staff bringing the virus to work.

Mr Andrews said aged care centres were "really challenging" because they were staffed by many casual workers."We see that both in terms of the number of cases and also the number of people who are by the very nature of these settings frail and aged, many have underlying health issues," Mr Andrews said.

Measures put in place include:
Aged care settings 'very, very challenging'
Mr Andrews said aged care was a "very, very challenging environment" when it came to stopping the spread of the virus.

He said the Government was "working very closely" with the Federal Government and aged care providers to consolidate staff shifts into single sites to prevent "chains of transmission" being driven by staff.
"That obviously doesn't eliminate, but significantly reduces, the risk of the virus being transmitted by staff from one setting to another," he said.
"It is incredibly difficult to keep this out of aged care settings, particularly with such a transient and flexible and often insecure workforce."

Victoria's Covid-19 aged care disaster: 'this virus is like a fire out of control'
The disaster unfolding in Victoria’s aged care homes was “absolutely foreseeable”, one of the country’s foremost experts in aged care says.

Authorities knew some facilities had poorly trained workers and underpaid part-time or casual staff who had to move between homes to make a living. There’d been overwhelming evidence about the vulnerability of aged care residents internationally. In Sydney, there was the outbreak of Covid-19 at Newmarch House. It was all documented.

“We got this wrong from the very start,” says Prof Joseph Ibrahim, the head of the health law and ageing research unit at Monash University. The result, he and other experts say, is what is unfolding in Victoria.

The vast majority of aged care homes in Australia are privately-run and regulated by the federal government. There are now dozens of facilities with multiple cases. In total, there were almost 450 cases on Thursday across some 35 sites.

How did this happen? In early April, after Covid-19 had ripped through the Dorothy Henderson Lodge Aged Care home in Sydney, the regulator of aged care facilities decided to assess how prepared the country’s other providers were for an outbreak. They launched an online survey asking all facilities to declare if they were ready.

Of the 2,638 residential homes that responded, 99.5% told the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission that they were ( ready )
<< yet no one checked by carrying out random unscheduled spot checks and inspection to confirm , Victoria's aged citisens are now paying the price >>

That was reassuring, but it was nonsense, says Ibrahim. The survey was about as useful as a police officer coming up to ask you if you were doing anything wrong.

“The survey was nice to do but asking people questions that they’re not aware of and not capable of answering and you’re the regulator [means] it’s not going to be a hand-on-heart moment, we’re in trouble, please visit us and give us a sanction.”
The critical government failure, says Ibrahim, was that while in the early days of the pandemic the focus was on a perceived shortage of acute care beds, ventilators and personal protective equipment, there was little obvious focus on aged care.

“In March, we had all of the stuff come out in Italy, Spain, France, England and the start of New York, all of that information told us that older people died far more in terms of fatality rates, and the highest fatality rate was for aged care or long-term residents”.

One report found that between 42% and 57% of deaths from the virus in various European countries were happening in care homes. The estimate is that, so far, about a 1/3 of fatalities in Australia are linked to aged care. In Canada, it’s 85%.For residents and their families, Melbourne’s outbreak is “terrifying”.

Ibrahim says the aged care outbreaks were predictable and state and federal governments are now playing catchup.
The wearing of face masks for all aged care workers was only made law on 13 July and then only in the locked-down Melbourne and Mitchell shire areas.

The interim report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care released in October 2019 laid bare the systemic problems in the sector – they were all known before the pandemic. A recent report found about 20% of facilities did not meet standards in “safe and effective personal and clinical care”.
<< Shelved and ignored when the sector cried "poor" and claimed was unable to implement recommendations because too expensive .>>

About 70% of the aged care workforce are personal care workers, often with a six-week certificate course as their qualification, with scant knowledge about deadly infection control. It is known that trained nurses have been a declining percentage of the workforce. A large percentage of the workforce are casuals or part-time workers, needing to work at multiple locations to make ends meet.

The Health Workers Union says 55% of their members in aged care work part-time, and 5% are casuals. Aged care workers often receive about $22 an hour, says union secretary Diana Asmar, and stopping them working a second job would drive many into poverty. The federal government, concerned about workers spreading the virus, is expected to announce a ban on working at multiple facilities next week.

With staff falling ill, there is a concern there won’t be enough workers in aged care facilities. The government has provided $234.9m for a retention bonus for workers in aged care facilities and in-home care, although the union says it should be provided for all workers including cleaners, kitchen staff and receptionists, not just carers and nurses.

The union, like Ibrahim, claims these problems have been known for years.

“If the aged care system was not working under usual circumstances, why on earth would anyone think that it would be able to ratchet up to perform extraordinarily well with this new threat?” Ibrahim says.

He argues the government should have months ago announced that every aged care home in the country would be case managed. The response has been too reactive.

Neither the state nor the federal government supports automatically transferring Covid-19 positive residents to hospital – instead saying it needs to be done on a case-by-case basis. The only state to enforce blanket hospitalisation so far is South Australia.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-s-covid-19-aged-care-disaster-this-virus-is-like-a-fire-out-of-control/ar-BB179N5L?ocid=msedgntp

The Federal and Victorian governments will establish a response centre to coordinate efforts to curb the worsening situation in aged care facilities across the state.

The new centre will be jointly managed by Emergency Management Australia, Emergency Management Victoria and VicHealth.
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said it would be located at the Victorian State Control Centre and draw together the Australian Defence Force (ADF), Federal and State governments, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner, clinical leaders, geriatric support and emergency management.

"Its tasks will include quality control workforce provisions, prevention of outbreaks, rapid response, supporting provider communications to families and others," Mr Hunt said.

Workers consolidating shifts to a single site instead of working in many places, to reduce the risk of spreading the virus
The Commonwealth providing financial support to workers who are disadvantaged because they can only work in one place

The State Government paying $1,500 for a person in insecure work that tests positive and $300 a day when a worker gets tested and is waiting for their result

Reduced visitor numbers
Asymptomatic testing for staff
Additional training in infection control
Victorian Chief Health Officer Professor Brett Sutton said the average age of residents in aged care is close to 90 years old.

"The severity of illness in that population is very significant," Professor Sutton said.
"Coronavirus is a very serious infection to get. The key is not having the virus introduced in the first place. Once you have an outbreak, their vulnerability puts them in danger."

Medically trained are getting sick
Professor Sutton said Saturday's figures indicated "a really challenging epidemic curve to overcome".
"I am hopeful and really keen to see what the effects of universal mask-wearing might be," Professor Sutton said.

He said treating the 229 people in hospital with the virus was a challenge but "relatively manageable".
"At some point, we will see a stabilisation in the active number of cases in Victoria, if our new cases remain stable. But it will continue to increase in terms of the admissions in acute settings for a couple of weeks after that," he said.

An Australian Defence Force officer who was supporting testing in Craigieburn has also tested positive to the virus.

Professor Sutton said it was not clear how the ADF member caught the virus and it would be investigated.

He said the case highlighted how infectious the disease was, when an ADF staffer who was medically trained and wearing personal protection equipment (PPE) tested positive.
Professor Sutton said the case was being investigated.
"Even those medically trained individuals using PPE and who have been trained in it and have been given all the appropriate PPE, can be at risk," he said.
"Sometimes it is in the donning or the doffing, or the washing of hands before and afterwards … It speaks to the absolute infectiousness of this virus."

Mr Andrews said he was grateful for the work of the ADF.
"Even with the full PPE, layer upon layer, no PPE can reduce the risk to zero. But ADF are playing a really important part, and we are very grateful to them, " he said.

Why stage 4 restrictions won't help?
Professor Sutton says this wave of infection is "not like the first wave".
"The numbers have remained stubbornly high," he said.

This week, people in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire must don a face mask when outside their homes, the latest measure to reduce infections.
"I am hopeful and really keen to see what the effects of universal mask wearing might be," he said.

Many people are speculating the State Government may need to tighten restrictions, but Professor Sutton says the focus remains on preventing transmission in aged care centres and workplaces like warehouse distribution centres and food production facilities.
"The very places where we are seeing outbreaks, the very places where we are seeing transmission, are the places that would remain open if we went to a stage four," he said.
"We shouldn't pretend that a really broad shutdown of industry will address where we are seeing the transmission."

Beware of scammers
People are being warned to be on the lookout for scammers wanting bank details.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) states its Scamwatch program has received 3,550 scam reports mentioning the coronavirus.
The Premier said reports of scammers posing as officials were "an ugly feature of our modern world" and "awful".
"No member of the contact tracing team is going to be asking for your credit card or your bank details," he said.

He did note if you have claimed the Government's $300 or $1,500 payment, you will be asked for those details.

Mr Andrews said he was confident that between the Health Department, Consumer Affairs Victoria and potentially police, the matters would be investigated.

Army move into Colac to help contain spread from abattoir
Meanwhile, the Australian Defence Force has arrived in Colac in Victoria's south-west to help with contact tracing efforts.

The number of active coronavirus cases in the town jumped from zero to 45 in just over a week after an outbreak at the Australian Lamb Company.

The abattoir is the town's largest employer with about 700 employees.

An incident control centre has been set up in the regional town to support contact tracing, testing and to ensure the community receives information about the evolving situation.
Three ADF members are helping with logistics, and up to 20 are expected to arrive on Monday to support a re-testing blitz.

Mark Gunning, from the Country Fire Authority, is part of the incident control team and says it will also provide food, relief packages and health support to those in quarantine.

"The idea of the [incident control] team is to bring all those parties together, to work collaboratively, so there's not ambiguity in messaging," he said.

"[Then] people can be really clear on what they need to be doing to stay safe."

ADF members will consist primarily of medical staff and be supported by general soldiers.

Mr Gunning said more people in the community were wearing masks, adding that it was vital everyone socially distanced and maintained good hygiene.

"Please, if there's a reason why you've got a test, if you've got symptoms or you've had a close contact, if you get a test go home, stay home," he said.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/victoria-coronavirus-latest-cases/12491948
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/key-points-from-victorian-premier-daniel-andrews-and-chief-health-officer-brett-sutton-s-latest-coronavirus-update/ar-BB17avoo?ocid=msedgntp

Serco stands down Melbourne call-centre staff without pay on one day's notice
<<fears of new clusters in call centres full of casual and parttime staff who have minimal working conditions and no right to demand improvements in OHS settings to make their workplaces covidsafe>>
Multinational outsourcing giant Serco gave staff at a Melbourne call centre just 24 hours’ notice before standing them down without pay indefinitely because of a Covid-19 outbreak, after they had spent months helping Australia’s surging numbers of unemployed.

The outbreak forced the closure on Monday of the Mill Park call centre in Melbourne, which helps fulfil the company’s Centrelink call centre contract with Services Australia.

Documents obtained by the Guardian show Serco has stood down all of its workers indefinitely.
The company wrote to staff on Wednesday telling them they would be stood down without pay from Thursday.

“The stoppage of work means that you are now stood down from work in accordance with section 524 of the Fair Work Act 2009,” Serco’s contract manager, June Meldrum, said in the letter.

“You will receive your ordinary pay in accordance with any confirmed shifts for today. For full time or part time staff, unpaid stand down will commence from Thursday 23 July 2020 onward. These people may, however, elect to utilise their annual leave entitlements during this period.

“Casual staff will not be rostered from Thursday 23 July 2020 until further notice.”

No mention was made of working from home, though the company has said it is attempting to work with its government client to institute such arrangements.

The letter told staff they remained “valued” by Serco.

“I confirm that while you are stood down, you remain a valued employee of Serco. However, we of course understand that you may need to make other arrangements during this period.”

A Serco spokesman said the company was working as hard as it could to have staff back performing essential government services “as soon as possible”.

“This is obviously an extremely difficult time for our Mill Park team, and we are doing all we can to safeguard our employees’ health and safety following the directive given to us by [the Department of Health and Human Services],” the spokesman said.

One source suggested to the Guardian that staff had continued to hot-desk throughout the pandemic, posing an unnecessary risk.

The company denied that claim. It also stridently denied any suggestion that the six cases it had recorded among call centre workers in July had been a result of staff-to-staff transfer.

Related: Home affairs fought for three years to stop Serco detention centre manual release

A spokesman said Serco was conducting temperature checks of staff, had placed perspex screens in workstations, employed “full sanitation protocols”, offered face masks, and conducted deep cleans.

It closed the centre last weekend voluntarily but decided to keep it closed on advice from the DHHS.

Serco said the department deemed that all employees of the call centre were “close contacts” of known cases, meaning they were required to self-isolate for the quarantine period and be tested.

Services Australia said the closure of the call centre would not affect its services.

It described the Serco closure as “precautionary”.

“Our services are not affected as Services Australia’s call centre network spans across the nation, including thousands of additional staff taking calls and processing claims as part of our coronavirus response,” the department said in a statement.

“Serco took a precautionary step to immediately close the Mill Park site and will work with the Victoria government’s Department of Health and Human Services to ensure the workplace is safe before reopening.”

The department also said it required all contractors to strictly adhere to the health authority requirements of the relevant states and territories.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/serco-stands-down-melbourne-call-centre-staff-without-pay-on-one-day-s-notice/ar-BB178dp8?ocid=msedgntp

Melbourne hospitals braces for potential doubling in COVID-19 caseload next week
Melbourne hospitals are bracing for a surge in coronavirus patients after confidential modelling by the city's major hospitals suggested cases could almost double over the next five days.
Yesterday, seven deaths and more than 300 cases were recorded in Victoria in what was the state's deadliest day.

The situation at aged care facilities continues to spiral out of control with five of those deaths and more than 200 infections aged care residents.

Aged care in Victoria is looming as a coronavirus disaster — brace for it to get worse
Brace for it to get far worse from here.

In the past fortnight, 34 Victorians have died with COVID-19, more than doubling the state's death toll from the virus.

But aged care stands as a looming disaster for the state, after a dramatic growth in infections across a growing list of nursing homes.

The total number of infected residents of nursing homes nationwide has quadrupled since the start of the month, from 71 to 292 and counting.

Almost the same number of nursing home staff have also been infected.
25july-aged-care-ticking-bomb.png

Residential aged care homes have been among the deadliest environments in this pandemic.

According to the Federal Government, at least 48 people living in residential aged care homes have died with COVID-19, as well as a further four people receiving in-home care services.

Before the current outbreaks in Victoria began, of the 71 aged care residents infected, 31 died and 40 recovered.

That is, 44 per cent of infected residents didn't survive, a horrific statistic.

As of Friday, there were 242 residents who were fighting the virus.

There's a strong likelihood the next few weeks will be grim.

We've seen this before
In the first wave of the pandemic, two serious nursing home outbreaks devastated Anglicare's Newmarch House and the Dorothy Henderson Lodge.

There were 71 infections among staff and residents at Newmarch House alone, and 17 deaths.

Later potential crises in aged care managed to be avoided, including at a nursing home in Rockhampton.
But now there are cases linked to at least 40 aged care homes in Victoria, and some of the outbreaks rival Newmarch House in size.
With many homes still curtailing family visits due to the threat of infection, the virus has typically been brought in by staff inadvertently.

The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission is examining how nursing homes manage the crisis and has already taking compliance action, including against Menarock last week.

"The Commission took regulatory action in relation to Menarock Life Essendon Aged Care Services because of significant concerns about the provider's response to the outbreak and the safety, health and wellbeing of the residents at the service," commissioner Janet Anderson said last week.

"Menarock Life Aged Care Services has notified the Commission that it has accepted the requirements imposed by the Commission under the regulatory action."

The regulator has also taken regulatory action in relation to Newmarch House.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/coronavirus-aged-care-deaths-victoria/12491538
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/melbourne-hospitals-braces-for-potential-doubling-in-covid-19-caseload-next-week/ar-BB17ahp0?ocid=msedgntp

Mask wearing in Victoria is 'essentially Stage (Level) 4'
Mr Andrews said the wearing of masks is essentially the state in "stage four lockdown".

Health authorities now encouraging mask use
Nick Talley, Editor-in-Chief of the Medical Journal of Australia, says evidence now shows that masks help stop the spread of COVID-19.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/health-authorities-now-encouraging-mask-use/vi-BB17a1S9?ocid=msedgntp

"If they are worn by everybody then we may not need to go further," he said.

"We cannot rule out going further with rule changes, but it is a big game changer, potentially, and I cannot tell you how proud I was to travel in here this morning and see literally every single person on my journey into the office from the middle ring suburbs in the south-east, wearing a mask. It is just a fantastic thing.

"And while people were a bit concerned and that was a bit of talk back and forth about whether it would happen, it is happening, it makes you proud, it is a significant step we can all take to potentially slow and limit the spread of this virus and then drive down case numbers."

He said Victoria Police is "out there" and will fine people who don't wear masks and will take action against you.

"By following these rules, and getting to the other side of the second wave," Mr Andrews said.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said the second wave is not like the first.

"The numbers have remained stubbornly high, haven't gone up significantly, haven't gone down significantly in the last week," Dr Sutton said.

He said if the state went to a formal stage four lockdown, the areas where there are significant outbreaks, such as aged care homes and schools, are the places which would remain open.

"So these are the areas we need to focus on, and we shouldn't pretend that a really broad shutdown of industry will address where we are seeing the transmission," Dr Sutton said.

"We need to really focus on how do you prevent transmission occurring in aged care, and the premier has listed some interventions we are working on there stop the spread for healthcare settings…food distribution centres, other warehouse distribution centres and food production facilities."

He said mask usage is essential to work towards stopping the spread and is hopeful of the results.

"But I do think, you know, the fact that we have got universal mask usage now, really, for the community, both going out of your home but also in all of the workplaces that people are attending, that is something that will address both these high risk settings, but also every other workplace," he said.
Mr Andrews said the current situation is a crisis, and he is working closely with the Federal Government to beat the outbreak, especially in aged care homes.

He said he is working closely with the Prime Minister for the "really challenging setting".

"We see that both in terms of the number of cases and also the number of people who are by the very nature of these settings frail and aged," Mr Andrews said.

"Many have underlying health issues. It is a very, very challenging environment, and I want to send my support and assurance to all families and staff, all of those involved in aged care, that many different steps have been taken, processes have been put in place."

He said state and federal governments, with the union, are looking at staff shifts and how the spread of the virus can be stopped.

Victorians urged to wear a mask while exercising
Melburnians doing exercise are being urged to wear a mask, despite being exempt from the new rules.

The state's Chief Health Officer Dr Brett Sutton said wearing a mask is "just a good idea all round", especially as people expel more air droplets, which could lead to the spread of coronavirus.

Rules this week came into place making face masks mandatory.

"We have made an exemption for people who are doing strenuous exercise, but I would say, if you can wear a mask when you are cycling, or when you are running, wear a mask, absolutely," Dr Sutton said.

"When you are exercising, you do breathe out more forcefully. But we have made consideration of the fact that for some people, doing strenuous exercise, they couldn't manage it with a mask on. So they needed that exemption.

"It doesn't mean that we wouldn't recommend a mask under normal circumstances, if they can manage it. But for some people, it makes breathing difficult.

"I am aware of people who can run a marathon in a mask. If you are one of those people, absolutely, wear a mask, running, cycling or anything else that is strenuous.

"But the exemption is there for the people who cannot manage that exercise otherwise."

Melburnians are allowed outside to exercise as one of the four reasons they can leave their homes.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victorians-urged-to-wear-a-mask-while-exercising/ar-BB17asOf?ocid=msedgntp

Masks part of the Melbourne look for a long time to come
Melburnians may need to wear masks on public transport and in other busy public spaces until there is a widely available vaccine for coronavirus.

University of NSW epidemiologist Mary-Louise McLaws said wearing face masks would be a significant cultural shift for Victorians, but a necessary means of protection in the battle against COVID-19.

"Wearing face masks is something that should become a part of people's everyday lives until a vaccine is found or this virus stops being a threat," the World Health Organisation adviser said.

Until Victoria drives cases down to single digits for at least a fortnight, those living in Melbourne or the Mitchell Shire should not go out in public without their nose and mouth covered, Professor McLaws said.

Police in Melbourne have been told to wear masks while working in their stations, it emerged late on Wednesday.
"Victoria Police has recommended staff wear face masks within controlled Victoria Police workplaces where physical distancing cannot be maintained, including where no contact with the public occurs," members have been advised.

As debate mounted on whether the state could achieve elimination of the virus, Victoria's Chief Health Officer, Brett Sutton, said on Wednesday that mandatory mask-wearing "shouldn’t be off the table", but he warned against police punishing people who could not access a mask.
<< Cops are actually providing free surgical masks people who have not been able to afford or find masks for sale for reasonable prices ( yes the price gougers are active AGAIN , including shamefully chemist chains and local chemist shops , hardware shops and supermarkets ) with warnings in Victoria .>>

"It’s a risk not to have them, especially with the transmission going on in Melbourne," Professor Sutton said.

People entering Victorian courts and tribunals are now strongly encouraged to wear face masks with security staff handing out disposable versions.

Is the aim elimination ( extinction of ) Covid19 or suppression of community transmission to a defacto elimination scenario ( single figure cases per week statewide ).

Asked whether Victoria should switch to an elimination approach to the virus, Professor Sutton said: "I'd love elimination, but it's not the right time to be assessing whether that is feasible right now."

When pressed on the likelihood of a harsher stage four lockdown in Victoria, Professor Sutton said any potential hardening of restrictions would be targeted at areas creating the biggest problems.

"If we’re seeing a focus in a particular setting, in a particular cohort of people, related to particular activities, that would be the focus of stage four restrictions," he said.

Professor Bill Bowtell, of UNSW's Kirby Institue for infection and immunity said, however, that the suppression strategy in Victoria was failing and called for the adoption of an elimination strategy.

He also questioned why Victorians weren't encouraged to wear masks sooner when infections began to climb in March.

“Do we keep on putting people in lockdown or do we go for hard lockdown and aim for eradication, which can be done and has been done?” asked Professor Bowtell, who helped lead Australia's response to the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.

"New Zealand did it and they haven't had community transmission in 70 days. This is a virus, it's not a supernatural zombie. It transmits between people so you need to separate people."

Tony Blakely, a University of Melbourne epidemiologist, is also pushing for Victoria to move into a hard lockdown.

“We know from lots of international experience now, the best one being Wuhan, you can basically knock this virus out of the park if you decide to lock down hard," Professor Blakely said.

"Given that we’ve already gone into a lockdown in Melbourne, we should turn something that depresses us into an an opportunity. In the six weeks of hard lockdown we could actually achieve elimination."

For this to work, the "loose definition" of what essential workers are must be tightened and Victoria would mirror the "New Zealand prototype", Professor Blakely said.

Places such as abattoirs, which have battled multiple outbreaks, should close for at least a month, along with schools, educational facilities and every business except essential services such as supermarkets, pharmacies and medical clinics.

However, Dr Nick Coatsworth, the federal Deputy Chief Medical Officer, has warned that elimination would be a risky strategy.

"The risk elimination creates is a false sense of security that may diminish the community engagement with widespread testing and lead to a downsizing of the enhanced public health response, based on an assumption “we have got rid of the virus once and for all in our part of the world”.

University of Melbourne epidemiologist Professor John Mathews argued that it might be too soon to aim for zero.

"It is impossible to go for elimination without suppressing it first," he said. “At the moment, one couldn’t rule out the possibility that in a week or 10 days' time, we’ve got a disaster on our hands."

Griffith University infectious diseases expert Professor Nigel McMillan said even if the virus was eliminated, Australia must "still deal with the rest of the world in some manner".

"Elimination won’t be a golden answer to your economic woes, especially in a country like New Zealand or Australia that relies on tourism," he said.

Professor McMillan said for the state to avoid future outbreaks, Victorians would have to change their way of thinking and remain vigilant not only during the lockdown period, but for the months or even years ahead.

"There are probably quite a few people who have said 'it’s just one thing, it’s just a small get-together with my family,’ but of course it does matter. We’ve got to eliminate that sort of attitude," Professor McMillan said. "It only takes one or two people to not do the right thing and it’s away."
https://www.smh.com.au/national/masks-part-of-the-melbourne-look-for-a-long-time-to-come-20200715-p55c5i.html
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/mask-wearing-in-victoria-is-essentially-stage-four/ar-BB17a5Rm?ocid=msedgdhp#image=1

Victorian police crack down on rule flouting
Victoria Police have warned they will crack down hard on any Victorian's flouting lockdown measures.

It comes as video emerged of a woman intentionally trying to cross a border checkpoint without giving a legitimate reason.

Over the past 24 hours the police have conducted 5,300 spot checks and dished out 101 fines and 63 warnings.

Police are now being assisted by the Australian Defence Force with contact tracing and door knocking procedures.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victorian-police-crack-down-on-rule-flouting/ar-BB179dOy?ocid=msedgntp

'Stressing me out beyond belief': Government clarifies advice on maternity visits
The government has changed its advice to expectant mothers and clarified that there will be no limit on how long partners can remain with new mothers in the hours after they give birth.

Expectant parents were left confused and alarmed after the state government said on Thursday that as part of measures to stem the spread of COVID-19, partners or a support person could stay at the hospital for only two hours after new mothers were moved from the birthing suite to postnatal care.

"From today, the rules that apply to maternity situations is that the woman is able to have her partner or support person for as long as is required for the entire labour and birth of their newborn baby and then their partner or support person is able to be with them for a two-hour visit after the baby is born," Health Minister Jenny Mikakos said at a press conference on Thursday.

"This addresses some of the concerns we have seen in relation to at least one health service that I'm aware of in the last week. We have tried to strike the balance there between compassion and safety."

he position was confirmed by Ms Mikakos' department after the media conference with a statement saying that ''on the day of the birth, once the mother and newborn move to the postnatal ward, a partner or support person can stay for up to a further two hours.

''A partner or support person can then visit once per day for a maximum of two hours every subsequent day the mother is in hospital."

However, late on Thursday night, Ms Mikakos said partners can stay as long as required on the day of the birth, but visits on the days after the birth will be capped at two hours.

"The only thing that's changed is a pregnant woman giving birth can now have one visitor when before it was two," she wrote on Twitter just before 11pm on Thursday.

"Her partner/support person can stay for as long as they wish during labour and birth and after the baby is born."

Visiting restrictions will be tightened across Victorian hospitals and aged care facilities as case numbers continue to rise among healthcare workers, nursing home staff and residents.

Only one person can visit hospital patients and aged care home residents for one hour a day, but there will be exceptions for parents with children in hospital and visitors of patients in palliative care.

Other exceptions include nominated mental health supporters, people providing language support and people visiting patients in life-threatening situations.

"This addresses some of the concerns we have seen in relation to at least one health service I'm aware of in the past week," said Ms Mikakos on Thursday. "We ask for Victorians' understanding at this challenging time."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/melbourne/stressing-me-out-beyond-belief-government-clarifies-advice-on-maternity-visits/ar-BB176Vu7?ocid=msedgntp

More Victorians taking up ocean swimming during lockdown
Many of the swimmers say cold water immersion has helped them deal with the stress of lockdown, and been a welcome distraction from the pandemic.
<< this is something along the lines of an immune system booster suggested a few times on MEDCram >>
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/more-victorians-taking-up-ocean-swimming-during-lockdown/vi-BB17a3UD?ocid=msedgntp

Woman who dodged COVID check questions posts she 'regrets nothing', the young covidiot conspiracy theorist condemned for 'childish act' at Victoria checkpoint
A woman Victorian authorities labelled "incredibly selfish" has posted she "regrets nothing" on her Facebook page, days after she made headlines for appearing to refuse to tell police where she was going at a Melbourne vehicle checkpoint.

The woman, known as Eve Black, appeared to boast about dodging one of the police roadblocks in a video she uploaded on Facebook - but it has since been taken down - where she refused to provide the officer with details of where she was travelling.

"I don't need to answer your questions," Ms Black said to police.
"Have I committed a crime?"

The police officer in the video responded "no, keeping going" before waving the woman through the checkpoint.

Victoria Police now plan to follow up the incident.

Ms Black has since deleted most content off her Facebook page, except for a post where she wrote: "I regret nothing. I'm just tired of the abuse and threats. Wake up, sleeper."

Police Minister Lisa Neville told reporters yesterday police knew the woman and they would "go and seek her out".
"She may not have realised the police officer was wearing a body worn camera," she said.

"I'm sure she'll be looking forward to a knock on the door from Victoria Police members."
The woman on Facebook spoke about travelling through the checkpoint and refusing to answer police.

"No fine, drove straight out of Melbourne, they took no info from me," she wrote.

"No license, no questions of theirs were answered. They work for us, not the other way around.

"You're being taken advantage of by a system designed to fail you. And they've done such a good job, that you don't even see it.
"I don't believe there's a pandemic. It's a SCAMdemic. Know your rights."

Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent called the defiance a "selfish and childish act".

"It was ridiculous and unnecessary," he said.
Ms Neville said police would reinforce to their members that they must view a person's license before they allow them to travel through a checkpoint.

"This person sought to embarrass this police officer," she said. "If feel bad for the police officer."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/melbourne/woman-who-dodged-covid-check-questions-posts-she-regrets-nothing/ar-BB177FN7?ocid=msedgntp
Victoria Police Deputy Commissioner Rick Nugent has condemned a young woman’s “selfish and childish act” after she filmed herself refusing to answer police questions at a COVID-19 checkpoint.
Eve Black performed for the camera as she repeatedly sidestepped police questions before celebrating when she was waved through by the police officer.

Victorian Police Minister Lisa Neville said “I’m sure she’ll be looking forward to a knock on the door from Victoria Police”.

Police issued more than 100 fines to people flouting restrictions in the past 24 hours alone.
<< IMO the Vic Police should have arrested her and taken her to the local lockup and used other means , ie rego of vehicle , her mobile phone's registered details , gone through her personal items to ascertain her identity then fined and charged her with long list of infringements and the entire incident as embarrising and costly for her as possible. >>
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/young-conspiracy-theorist-condemned-for-childish-act-at-victoria-checkpoint/ar-BB179Thq?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
25 July in NSW

NSW records 15 new cases of COVID-19
6 new infections are in hotel quarantine ( interstate & returned international travelers) , while the rest were locally acquired.

Sydney cases
Fairfield woman tests positive to COVID-19 after attending funeral, church services as NSW Health undertakes contact tracing
Health authorities are urging worshippers and funeral attendees to watch for COVID-19 symptoms after a woman who attended a number of Catholic services in Sydney's south west tested positive to the virus.

NSW Health said those who attended the following services over a four-day period should self-isolate and get tested immediately if they develop symptoms.

>> St Brendan's Catholic Church Bankstown for one hour on July 16 from 6:30pm
>> Ausia Funeral Services at Fairfield East on July 17 between 1:00pm and 8:00pm
>> Funeral service at St Brendan's Catholic Church, Bankstown for one hour on July 18 from 10:00am
>> Burial service at St John of God Lawn at Rookwood Cemetery on July 18 between 11:30am and 1:00pm
>> Our Lady of Mt Carmel Catholic Church at Mt Pritchard for one hour on July 19 from 7:30am
25july-furneral-junky.png


The warning comes after a woman in her 40s from the Fairfield area tested positive on Thursday after attending the services.

NSW Health said contact tracing was underway.

Woolworths has since sent an email to "strongly encourage" customers in Fairfield and Liverpool to wear a face mask at its Woolworths, BWS, Dan Murphy's and Big W stores.

In a statement, Woolworths said: "While wearing masks is not mandatory in NSW, we strongly encourage both our team members and customers to wear face coverings in our stores situated in identified 'hot spots' areas."

The NSW Health warning also comes on the same day NSW limited the number of people able to attend funerals to 100, as part of a tightening of COVID-19 restrictions.

When the restrictions were announced last Friday, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said they would be particularly difficult for those grieving, but were vital to maintaining public health.

"[Funerals] are emotional occasions where people know each other and that increases the risk of transmission," she said..
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/fairfield-woman-tests-positive-to-covid-19-after-attending-funeral-church-services-as-nsw-health-undertakes-contact-tracing/ar-BB178ZOm?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/fairfield-woman-tests-positive-to-covid-19-after-attending-funeral-church-services-as-nsw-health-undertakes-contact-tracing/ar-BB178StE?ocid=msedgntp

Earlier on Friday, 3 Catholic schools in Sydney's west closed for deep cleaning after 4 students tested positive to coronavirus.

The schools are
Cerdon College in Merrylands,
Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School in Bossley Park
and Freeman Catholic College at Bonnyrigg Heights.

NSW Health confirmed all 4 cases were new infections linked to the Thai Rock restaurant in Wetherill Park, in Sydney's south west.

2 of the cases are also linked to Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral at Harris Park, where a pop-up clinic has been running since Tuesday.

A record 36,169 tests were conducted in the 24 hours leading up to 8:00pm on July 23.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/fairfield-woman-tests-positive-to-covid-19-after-attending-funeral-church-services-as-nsw-health-undertakes-contact-tracing/ar-BB178ZOm?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/four-coronavirus-cases-linked-to-catholic-services-in-sydney-s-south-west-as-thai-rock-cluster-grows-to-60/ar-BB17a5lg?ocid=msedgntp
Thai Rock COVID cluster grows
The cases connected to the Thai Rock cluster include 2 people who went to Cerdon College in Merrylands who were close contacts of a confirmed case who attended Our Lady of Lebanon church.

https://twitter.com/NSWHealth/status/1286831707346178048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Six are contacts of existing cases linked to the restaurant and include 2 children who went to Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School in Bossley Park and Freeman Catholic College at Bonnyrigg Heights .

NSW Health said a couple in their 60s from the state's north coast and a couple in their 50s and 60s from Sydney's south-west are connected with a series of funeral gathering and church services which were attended by a woman in her 40s from the Fairfield area.

Her case was discovered on Thursday.There were no new cases connected to the Crossroads Hotel.

There are now 60 cases connected to the Thai Rock restaurant and eight associated with Batemans Bay Soldiers club.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/sydney-s-thai-rock-covid-cluster-grows-as-nsw-records-15-new-cases/ar-BB17a4aI?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/nsw-thai-rock-coronavirus-cluster-grows/ar-BB179UtP?ocid=msedgntp

There were 30,535 tests undertaken in the latest reporting period.

Police crackdown
NSW Police said on Saturday it would fine who attended a DJ party in the Lake Jindabyne alpine area, as people were warned to stick to the latest restrictions that came into force on Friday.
NSW police caught up to 100 people gathering for an organised event with a DJ in a national park near Thredbo yesterday.
25july-dj.png

Everyone who attended the event would be receiving infringements in relation to breaking coronavirus restrictions, COVID-19 Police Operations Commander Assistant Commissioner Scott Whyte said.

A 22-year-old woman was also arrested at Mount Druitt in Sydney's west after it was found she had recently travelled from Victoria and was supposed to be isolation.

"Police identified the person and they were aware that they were subject to a Victorian border crossing direction. The person was unable to comply and subsequently was placed under arrest," Mr Whyte said.

In the past 24 hours, NSW Police had also responded to call outs to two homes where more than 20 people had gathered, he said.

"This is a very serious situation and people need to act responsibly. We've seen evidence in the last 24 hours of people acting irresponsibly and those persons will be subject to fines and other police action."

Individuals can be fined $1,000 for breaking COVID 19 restrictions, which may escalate to being arrested and possibly jailed after multiple breaches.

NSW Police Minister David Elliott also put out a warning for businesses to take the coronavirus rules seriously.

"There are no three strikes when it comes to a pandemic." Mr Elliot said, adding that hospitality venues would receive a $5000 fine "immediately" if they breached public health laws.

"If they do the wrong thing again they will be closed for one week, and if they do the wrong thing a third time they could be closed for up to a month," Mr Elliott said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/nsw-police-bust-up-to-100-gathered-for-dj-event/ar-BB17a3Rr?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/dozens-facing-big-fines-after-nsw-police-bust-bushland-music-event-in-jindabyne

Police operations commander Scott Whyte said there were at least four instances in the past 24 hours of people "acting irresponsibly".

The incident was "an organised event" of up to 200 people.Many ran off into bushland once police arrived but those left behind were identified and will be fined.

A woman was arrested and refused bail after being identified at Mount Druitt railway station in Sydney's west in relation to a breach of a Victorian border-crossing direction.

Police said there were also 2 instances of households in Auburn and Doonside hosting gatherings of more than 20 people where attendees "will be subject to legal process".

It comes as police launched what is being tagged a "COVID army" to monitor compliances across pubs, restaurants, cafes and other venues in line with the latest restrictions introduced on Friday.
Alongside police officers, inspectors will be drawn from the Food Authority, Liquor and Gaming, Public Health, Fair Trading and SafeWork departments.
Inspectors will be checking venues both in uniform and undercover, the Government said.

Business will face a $5,000 fine for a breach of a public health order.

On a second offence they will be shut for a week and a third offence will draw a shutdown for up to a month.

NSW Police Minister David Elliott said it was important for people to go out and safely support businesses.

"There are over 250,000 people who found themselves out of work in some of the licensed premises and we don't want that," he said.

"That is not in the best interests of the economy and it is certainly not in the best interest of the mental health of our community.

"So, the first line of defence will always be the patrons. They need to make sure that they are doing the right thing."

The growing Sydney outbreak has led the Newcastle Knights NRL team to ban Sydney-based fans from Sunday's game at Hunter Stadium.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/three-sydney-schools-closed-as-students-test-positive-to-covid-19/vi-BB179Txl?ocid=msedgntp

Far South Coast Clusters

'A nightmare': Batemans Bay thrust back into coronavirus lockdown
For months, Christine Howarth has watched on from the Malua Bay bowling club as a man drives his car onto a blackened patch of earth where his home once stood and sits alone for an hour each day.
"It's so sad. He pulls up and sits in his car and looks at his house which isn't there anymore," said Ms Howarth, the club manager.
"He sits there for an hour and then comes into our club, that's a routine for him each day to come here and communicate with others."

His home and the bowling club were among scores of properties destroyed on New Year's Eve as fires tore through the South Coast.

Rebuilt with temporary equipment in February, the club served as a hub for a community dealing with the horrors of the fires until the coronavirus hit and pushed the town into isolation.

Now the entire community is facing another outbreak, forcing the club to shut down once again.
"We had members gathering on the greens hugging, counselling each other after the fires. To not have that, to be shut down for a third time, it's just devastating," Ms Howarth said.
"It has been a nightmare. Having the club burn down, to rebuild before the first round of COVID-19 and then this one again."

The small town, along with the rest of the Batemans Bay region to the north, was thrust back into a self-imposed lockdown earlier this week after eight COVID-19 cases were traced back to the popular Soldiers Club.

After drought, fires, a flood and now two bouts of coronavirus lockdown, the local economy is on its knees.

Owner of Starfish Cafe on the Batemans Bay waterfront, Paul O'Connor, hasn't served a customer since March 23.

Mr O'Connor, who invested in the cafe last year, lost the peak season to the bushfires before shutting down during the first wave of coronavirus. He took that as an opportunity to renovate the cafe, but its reopening has now been pushed back because of the most recent spike.
"We've sort of managed to just hold on up until now. We're right at the brink now," he said.
"If we don't get summer, we'll be done."

The Batemans Bay local said his business was losing up to $5000 a week and needed to reopen just to be able to address the mounting bills.
"The whole town has just come to a standstill... mentally it's scary."

Three of Mr O'Connor's staff, including head chef Aaron Crowther, were caught up in the Soldiers Club outbreak and have gone into isolation.

Mr Crowther, who on Friday was still waiting for his test results, went to a local soccer game last week attended by someone who was at the Soldiers Club.
"The hospitality industry has taken an absolute beating this year. It will be hard for a lot of places to recover. It could take a good couple of years," Mr Crowther said from isolation.

Scores of businesses across the region have been affected by the isolation requirements imposed on anyone who attended the Soldiers Club on July 13, 15, 16 and 17.

Among them are dozens of health and aged-care staff, according to local GP Andrew Gibson.

Dr Gibson said the Soldiers Club had been one of the busiest venues in town since regional travel restrictions were lifted on June 1.
"The reason the Soldiers Club was such a risk was because there are very few restaurants open in town and if people were holidaying here, were going there," Dr Gibson said.
"We're pretty safe here and we're pretty upset that it has reared its head again, everyone is anxious and it feels a bit like a ghost town."

The Herald understands several health workers and dozens of aged-care workers are among the hundreds of people in quarantine.

The region's massive retiree population makes it particularly vulnerable to the coronavirus, which has devastated aged-care facilities through Sydney and Melbourne.
"That would be the most horrible thing if it gets into the aged-care facilities. We can't look after those people here," Dr Gibson said.

Senior NSW minister and local member Andrew Constance said the age of the local population was an "incredible concern".
"There's this unknown associated with this point in time. Its unsettling, its nerve-racking and in many ways frightening," Mr Constance said.

Mr Constance, who saw first-hand the devastation last summer's fires doled out on the region, said he was taking little comfort from a run of days with zero confirmed cases.
"This is just as deadly but you can't tangibly see it," he said.

Batemans Bay Business and Tourism Chamber president Alison Miers said the region had swelled with tourists through June and early April, before sinking back into lockdown.
"It was dead until the first of June when travel restrictions lifted and then it's been pumping since then ... and now it has emptied out again," Ms Miers said.

"Quite a few businesses were doing really good trade, then you get buoyed and think 'we're going to be all right' and then everyone has closed."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/a-nightmare-batemans-bay-thrust-back-into-coronavirus-lockdown/ar-BB1793XP?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/nsw-records-15-new-cases-of-covid-19/vi-BB17aaD9?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/four-coronavirus-cases-linked-to-catholic-services-in-sydney-s-south-west-as-thai-rock-cluster-grows-to-60/ar-BB17a5lg?ocid=msedgntp

In the far west of NSW
Broken Hill businesses tighten COVID-19 policies as others relax amid tourist influx
An increased number of interstate travellers in far west New South Wales has forced local businesses to make tough decisions about who they allow into their premises.

The Demo Club in Broken Hill has been refusing entry to all visitors from Greater Sydney and Victoria.
Operations manager Ben Offord said there had been mixed reactions to the policy, but most people were obliging.
"There are those few who think that it's all a joke and it's very hard to change those mindsets," he said.
"There could be just one little slip up and then unfortunately we would have to shut the business."

Tourism and safety
The Broken Hill Sturt Club had also displayed a sign stating it would refuse entry to all Victorian travellers.
The club later removed the sign after the border between NSW and Victoria had been closed for 14 days.
Sturt Club Manager Douglas Coff said the sign had upset some Victorian patrons, but the policy was in place for good reason.
"It was good enough for the Government to put a blanket ban on Victorians coming into NSW — we followed suit," he said.
The Sturt Club will still refuse entry to all visitors from declared COVID-19 hotspots.

Lakeview Caravan Park manager Karen De Franceschi said some travellers were offended when they were refused entry to some local businesses.
"They just weren't very welcomed or impressed with the reaction of businesses around Broken Hill at that time," she said.

Increased testing efforts
Local Health District chief executive Umit Agis said COVID-19 testing had recently doubled in Menindee because locals were anxious about the influx of tourists.
"We are looking at more public awareness and how we might be able to encourage some of the people in the caravan parks to do more testing," he said.
"We have seen the transmissions in NSW primarily originate from Victoria, so I can understand the anxiety in the community."

Broken Hill Outback Resort manager Wendy Blaine said many travellers were eager to extend their stay and see more of the far west because of the border restrictions.
"It has been fantastic to hear that they would normally go to Queensland or overseas," she said.
But now it's an opportunity to travel through regional New South Wales and discover their own backyard."

Ms De Franceschi said the Lakeview Caravan Park was happy to take anyone from anywhere as long as they were honest about where they had travelled in the last 14 days.
25july-broken-hill-awash-with-victorians.jpg

< awash with Victorians who don't want to return home >
"If they've come from Victoria after the borders shut we're not happy to take them, but we are looking at each circumstance," she said.
The caravan park experienced a lull in bookings and many cancellations when it was announced the South Australian border would remain closed to NSW.
"There has to be some consideration from the government with city people compared to country people," Ms De Franceschi said.

Victorians 'happy being out here'
Traveller Rob Marshall, from the regional Victorian town of Horsham, set a course for NSW before the border closed.
"We could read between the lines that the Premier was going to shut things down," he said.
"So we thought we'll get out while we can and go around the outback."
Apart from some negative looks, Mr Marshall said he felt welcomed by locals.
"We've only been doing what we have to do — groceries, fuel, chemist runs and variety stores," he said.
"We had a vibe at the racecourse — they saw the VIC number plates and the body language wasn't real flash."So we got the message, we drove away."

Noel Rainey said he and his wife left Victoria last month without realising how much the COVID-19 situation would escalate.Now they're fearful of going back.
"We're quite happy being out here where things seem a hell of a lot safer," he said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/broken-hill-businesses-tighten-covid-19-policies-as-others-relax-amid-tourist-influx/ar-BB178cUT?ocid=msedgntp
Woolworths urges customers across to wear masks in some Sydney stores
Woolworths is “strongly encouraging” customers across its stores in Sydney’s southwest to wear masks while shopping.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/woolworths-urges-customers-across-to-wear-masks-in-some-sydney-stores/vi-BB179WAW?ocid=msedgntp
<< COLES , AIDE , and others will likely follow suite , IMO this should be made a condition of employment for their staff in all of NSW and Victoria , and customers also required to wear masks on the premises. >>

NSW police officer 'threatened' during COVID-19 compliance check
A NSW police officer has allegedly been personally threatened during a COVID-19 compliance check on the state's south coast.

9News understands the officer was attempting to conduct an isolation check on a couple in Kiama Heights when an argument broke out.

The man and a woman, who started filming the incident while standing behind the home's front screen door, claim the officer was trespassing on their property.
"Why won't you answer my questions when I've already told you…," the male officer says before being interrupted.
"Listen, I've asked you a question once. I'm going to ask you a question twice," the male occupant of the property can be heard saying.
"Can you please write down your name, on your business card, with your insurance policy before we continue…"

The officer then questions what the couple means by insurance policy.
"Your liability number," the woman can be heard saying. The man then chimes in: "We're going to go after you for trespassing on our lot."

The officer calmly informs the couple if they wish to make a complaint they can contact the police station. This does not sit well with the couple.
"I don't want to complain to the police station, I want to complain to you," the man says.
"The complaint is against you," the woman adds.
"And then I'm going to go after you personally. Not the NSW Police," the man can be heard saying.

NSW Police told 9News police have attempted to conduct a compliance check on the couple three times.

The matter is being investigated. .
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/nsw-police-officer-threatened-during-covid-19-compliance-check/ar-BB178aJj?ocid=msedgntp
<< I hope the NSW Police charge this couple for obstruction and noncompliance with covid19 requirements ( and teach them an expensive lesson ) , this kind of bullying should not be tolerated >>
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
24 and 25 July in SA

24 JULY
- South Australia bans EVERYONE from Victoria entering the state
South Australia will close its borders to anyone coming from Victoria as the state tightens coronavirus measures amid ongoing concerns with the surge in cases in Melbourne.

Premier Steven Marshall said the hard border closure with Victoria will come into effect on July 28 at midnight and will also prevent any SA citizens returning home.

Three new cases of coronavirus were recorded in SA over the past two days and 95 per cent of cases in the state coming from Victoria.

The state's border will also remain closed to NSW and the ACT due to the growing number of community transmission cases from coronavirus clusters. Previously, only essential travellers and citizens from Victoria were allowed entry into SA but that exemption has also been removed.

'The entire nation is on high alert,' Mr Marshall said on Friday.SA will also impose a 50-person cap on family gatherings and a 100-person cap for weddings and funerals.
'NSW are doing a huge amount of work to get in top of these clusters.'
'We are concerned that there has been further seeding of these clusters and the infections.' One of SA's recent COVID-19 cases is a man in his 40s, who is a wharf worker that had gone to Melbourne as an essential traveller.

His close contacts have also been tested for the virus with their results still to be returned.

But Chief Public Health Officer Nicola Spurrier says the man's wife and a friend work in two of Adelaide's hospitals so about 10 hospital staff have been sent home as a precautionary measure.

The man's case took the state's total COVID-19 infections to 447 and 4 people have died since the outbreak began.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/sa-strengthens-hard-border-with-victoria/12490138?nw=0
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/south-australia-bans-everyone-from-victoria-entering-the-state/ar-BB177Zq5?ocid=msedgntp

SA reinstates restrictions
SA authorities are reinstating some restrictions to avoid a second wave of coronavirus.
New COVID-19 laws proposed
The arrests are the latest in a series of incidents involving South Australia's hard border with Victoria.

Earlier this week, two men and a woman were each fined between $3,000 and $3,600 after entering South Australia via the Riverland.

All three were Victorian residents but claimed one of them needed urgent medical treatment after a motorbike accident.

Also this week, two men faced court accused of sneaking into South Australia from Victoria by driving between two trucks in a truck lane.

They claimed they did not see the checkpoint on the Dukes Highway at Wolseley.

Proposed laws that went before state parliament this week mean those who breach coronavirus restrictions could be jailed for up to two years.

The bill would also allow pharmacists to conduct COVID-19 tests and the State Government to charge $3,000 for returning international travellers to stay at hotels while in quarantine.

People who breach the current laws, such as by entering South Australia from Victoria when not a local or essential traveller, currently face either an on-the-spot fine of $1,000 or a possible penalty imposed by a court of $20,000.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-sa-reinstates-restrictions/vi-BB178jay?ocid=msedgntp


Mount Gambier's wastewater screened for COVID-19 as concerns grow over Victoria threat
argeted wastewater coronavirus testing underway in Mount Gambier has yet to detect any traces of the disease, but experts warn the region remains at high risk.

The introduction of wastewater surveillance comes as COVID-19 testing rates climb across the Limestone Coast and mandatory testing of Victorians crossing the South Australia-Western Victoria border.

While COVID-19 testing in Adelaide's wastewater treatment has been operating since April, authorities remain concerned the virus could creep into vulnerable Limestone Coast communities.

Concern is heightened given Mount Gambier is just 20 kilometres from the state boundary and is a major gateway into the state.

No traces of COVID detected in Mount Gambier wastewater yet
SA Water senior manager water expertise and research, Daniel Hoefel, said the process had yet to detect any trace of the virus in Mount Gambier's sewage stream.
"By screening multiple sites across SA, it will hopefully give us an early warning as to whether or not the prevalence of COVID-19 in the South Australian community is there or increasing," Dr Hoefel said.

He said SA Health would be alerted immediately if a positive result emerged.
"They would then take the appropriate public health steps to identify the potential sources or location," Dr Hoefel said.

He said this screening technique was also used for drug surveillance and other organisms that could cause disease.
"We've used our skills within scientists and engineers to really develop a test specific for COVID-19 from wastewater," he said.

Dr Hoefel said wastewater screening had been operating for about a week in Mount Gambier.
"We are dovetailing here with the broader public health effort that is being led by SA Health," he said.

Dr Hoefel said wastewater surveillance could potentially pick up the presence of the virus before standard testing.

Limestone Coast community at risk
SA Health principal water quality advisor, David Cunliffe, said the Limestone Coast community was at risk due to the escalating number of cases in Victoria and its proximity to the state partition.

"We could get transport of cases across the border into South Australia and Mount Gambier is one of the major ports of entry," Dr Cunliffe said.

He said sewage testing for COVID-19 was a new technique.
"It only came to light in March really that you could detect the virus in wastewater," Dr Cunliffe said.
"Somewhere around 50 per cent of people with the disease do excrete the virus in their faecal material.
"It's innovative as far as disease is concerned, there are a lot of countries that are doing this now, and but it is new."

He said the first REPORTS of this could be done for COVID-19 were published in March.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/mount-gambier-s-wastewater-screened-for-covid-19-as-concerns-grow-over-victoria-threat/ar-BB178cwt?ocid=msedgntp

Adelaide men refused bail after police pursuit and allegedly speeding through SA border coronavirus checkpoint
24july-cars-12487884-4x3-xlarge.jpg

Nabbed
24july-carx2-12489634-16x9-xlarge.jpg

Their cars in the SA Police empoundment waiting being turned into a scrap metal cube.
Key points:
The two men repeatedly refused requests by police to stop their cars
They were eventually caught using road spikes at Tailem Bend
The pair was refused police bail and will face the Adelaide Magistrates Court today
Two men have been refused bail after allegedly speeding through a South Australian border checkpoint and fleeing for nearly 200 kilometres before being stopped by police using road spikes.

Police say a Holden Captiva and Holden Calais approached a Dukes Highway checkpoint at Wolseley, near Bordertown, about 1:30am today.

SA Police said officers signalled for the cars to stop, however, both continued on the highway.

Police cars followed for a short time but lost sight of the pair, and called in back-up patrols and the police helicopter.

The cars were spotted at a petrol station at Keith, about 220 kilometres south-east of the Adelaide CBD, and again just outside of Tailem Bend.

After another brief police pursuit, road spikes were used to stop the cars near the Tailem Bend Hospital, where the pair were arrested and taken to the Adelaide City Watch House.Both were charged with failing to comply with COVID-19 directions, failing to stop and driving unlicensed.

The Adelaide Magistrates Court heard Dillon Mitchell, 26, was attempting to cross the border to visit his eight-year-old daughter and had a warrant out for his arrest on an unrelated matter since 2015.

His co-accused, Dylan Martin, 26, had been visiting his partner in NSW and said he believed he was exempt from stopping at the border checkpoint.

Both men will remain in custody until August.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/two-men-to-face-court-after-alleged-border-breach-in-sa/12487872

25 JULY
South Australia bans EVERYONE from Victoria entering the state
South Australia will close its borders to anyone coming from Victoria as the state tightens coronavirus measures amid ongoing concerns with the surge in cases in Melbourne.

Premier Steven Marshall said the hard border closure with Victoria will come into effect on July 28 at midnight and will also prevent any SA citizens returning home.

Three new cases of coronavirus were recorded in SA over the past two days and 95 per cent of cases in the state coming from Victoria.

The state's border will also remain closed to NSW and the ACT due to the growing number of community transmission cases from coronavirus clusters. Previously, only essential travellers and citizens from Victoria were allowed entry into SA but that exemption has also been removed.

'The entire nation is on high alert,' Mr Marshall said on Friday.
'NSW are doing a huge amount of work to get in top of these clusters.'
'We are concerned that there has been further seeding of these clusters and the infections.'

SA will also impose a 50-person cap on family gatherings and a 100-person cap for weddings and funerals.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/south-australia-bans-everyone-from-victoria-entering-the-state/ar-BB177Zq5?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
WA on 24 and 25 July

24 July

Interstate truck-drivers to face mandatory coronavirus testing on WA border
24-JULY-TRUCKS-WA-SA-BB178-Hp-K.jpg

Truck drivers from Victoria and New South Wales will face mandatory coronavirus testing at the WA border — amid concerns they could bring the pandemic to the state. But it's feared the testing regime could slow the delivery of vital supplies.

About 60 per cent of the products sold in WA travel from interstate — most of them by road. That includes fresh food, packaged goods and medicines.Nine News understands the testing will only apply to those who have been in Victoria and NSW 14 days prior to entering WA. And if the driver is leaving WA within 48 hours of their arrival, they won't be tested either.

However, any driver tested at the border would then have to wait there until the results came back. And that poses issues for the freight industry on many levels because it would be about two days of waiting.

The industry says truckies are starting to feel "vulnerable"."Everyone is realising that this is a changing situation and even truck drivers are starting to feel vulnerable," Nicole Lockwood from the Freight and Logistics Council said.

The state said today it's delaying moves to open up even more, amid Victoria's crisis.

WA Premier Mark McGowan called truckies 'heroes' but said they brought a "threat factor".
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/truck-drivers-to-face-mandatory-coronavirus-testing/ar-BB178HpU?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-interstate-truck-drivers-to-be-tested-on-wa-border/vi-BB178ARu?ocid=msedgntp

<< Maybe this could be speeded up if the drivers had a tag-team arrangement with a workmate who took over at the WA - SA border check point so the driver from the east just waited at the checkpoint while his college took over the run to the west or northwest , then on returning it's visa versa with for the return run to the east . >>

McGowan stands strong on WA border regulations
WA Premier Mark McGowan says his state will continue to uphold it's strong stance on borders despite Tas. Premier Peter Gutwein's announcement of a travel bubble.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/mcgowan-stands-strong-on-wa-border-regulations/vi-BB177XHy?ocid=msedgntp

Domestic tourism booms in WA amid tight border closure
With overseas and interstate travel out of the question, domestic tourism is booming in Western Australia according to Broadcaster Jane Marwick.

Ms Marwick said regional real estate “had never been busier.”

“People are desperate to get out of the city,” she said.

“People who live in apartments want, say, a quarter acre block, a house and land package.

“People who live in houses in the city want acreage.”

The rush to move from the city to the country meant regional towns in WA were doing “very, very nicely,” Ms Marwick said.

Ms Marwick said during the recent school holidays, the northern WA town Exmouth had undergone a population increase from 2,500 to 16,000 people, and Karratha, a town near Exmouth, “almost doubled its population.”
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/domestic-tourism-booms-in-wa-amid-tight-border-closure/ar-BB178rOx?ocid=msedgntp

25 JULY WA

WA phase five delayed until at least August 15 amid COVID-19 outbreak in Victoria
Phase five of eased coronavirus restrictions in Western Australia will be delayed by at least another two weeks as Victoria continues to experience high levels of COVID-19.

Under phase five, the two-square-metre rule limiting the capacity of venues and the 50 percent rule for Perth Stadium and large venues would have been abolished.

The new tentative date set for phase 5 is August 15.
Mr McGowan conceded many people would be disappointed by the delay to phase 5.

"It would have meant more patrons in many venues, and it would have also meant easier access into our remote Aboriginal communities, and probably that the casino could open more fully than it already has," he said.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan said the decision was based on advice from the state's chief health officer.
"The reality is we have to protect people, this is a sensible and cautious measure," Mr McGowan said.

The start date for phase five had initially been pushed back from July 18 to August 1, as Melbourne first began to see large spikes in COVID-19 cases.

The Premier said every person who flew into the state from Victoria during the month of July had been tracked down by the Health Department and tested for COVID-19.

None of those people recorded a positive result.

Last week, WA authorities began testing all arrivals from Victoria at Perth Airport and from last Saturday, all arrivals from that state were required to undergo isolation in a Perth hotel.

There were no new cases of COVID-19 recorded in WA overnight.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/wa-phase-five-delayed-until-at-least-august-15-amid-covid-19-outbreak-in-victoria/ar-BB177TKA?ocid=msedgntp

ADF personnel brought into coronavirus quarantine hotels in WA after alleged breaches
Key points:
The move comes after the ABC revealed concerns among hotel staff
Premier Mark McGowan says he requested assistance earlier this week
It will most likely be Army Reservists who are brought in to assist

ADF personnel are set to be stationed in Perth quarantine hotels to assist with security arrangements, after whistleblowers flagged concerns about the handling of international and interstate arrivals.
Premier Mark McGowan said he requested the assistance earlier this week after learning the Prime Minister had made defence resources available to assist with hotels in other states.

It comes after the ABC 4CORNERS AND 30REPORT revealed staff working in WA's hotel quarantine system had grave concerns about the handling of interstate and international arrivals, with repeated rule breaches and fears of an over-reliance on private security contractors within the state's hotel quarantine system.

Mr McGowan said it would likely be WA-based Army Reservists who would join 240 contracted security guards already working across five hotels.
But he said he had stipulated that no reservists already in essential roles be used. "We're not going to have reservists that are police officers suddenly taking off their police uniform and putting on their reservist uniform and doing another role," he said.
"We're doing the same with doctors.

We're not going to have doctors or reservists in essential occupations for the state take off their state uniform and put on a defence uniform."
But the Premier refused calls by the State Opposition to make public the results of a review into WA's quarantine hotels.

He said the release of those details could compromise security arrangements.

There were no new cases of COVID-19 recorded in WA overnight.

Quarantine Hotel numbers under control: Premier
The Premier said every person who flew into the state from Victoria during the month of July had been tracked down by the Health Department and tested for COVID-19.

Last week, WA authorities began testing all arrivals from Victoria at Perth Airport and from last Saturday, all arrivals from that state were required to undergo isolation in a Perth hotel.

Mr McGowan said the tightened restrictions on arrivals into WA introduced in the past few weeks had also worked to bring the number of people undergoing isolation in hotels under control.

He said there were now about 1,400 people undergoing two weeks of mandatory quarantine across five Perth hotels.

He said the cap placed on international arrivals into WA had helped, while the tightened exemption processes for arrivals from Victoria and New South Wales had dramatically lowered the number of people flying in from those states.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/defence-force-brought-into-wa-quarantine-hotels-after-complaints/12488742
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
24 and 25 July in NT

24 July

Premier Peter Gutwein says the travel bubbles will commence on August 7
On Friday 7th August Tasmania will reopen its borders to South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia using its "Good To Go" travel registration system.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/premier-peter-gutwein-says-the-travel-bubbles-start-august-7/12490450?nw=0

Arnhem Land politician wants more support for NT coronavirus border checks after alleged breach
Key points:
NT police have accused two men of making false declarations upon their arrival in east Arnhem Land
MLA Yingiya Guyula says the NT Government needs to do more to prevent coronavirus spreading in remote communities
Tourists have been barred from a popular outback route in Central Australia

Arnhem Land independent politician Yingiya Guyula has called for more resources to protect the region from COVID-19 after two men flew into the remote town of Nhulunbuy and allegedly lied to authorities about their recent travel to a coronavirus hotspot.The NT opened its borders to most states last Friday but arrivals from designated hotspots including Victoria, Greater Sydney, Port Stephens and Eurobodalla Shire are required to undergo 14 days of supervised quarantine at a cost of $2,500.

Police began investigating the two men — who arrived in the Top End on Tuesday on a flight from the ACT via Queensland — after they allegedly gave differing accounts about their recent travels on their arrival forms.

"Some suspicions were aroused because there were some discrepancies in the two different forms," Commander Matt Hollamby said.

"And the police made further inquiries … and identified that the men had been in Sydney throughout the last two weeks."The pair, aged 25 and 54, have been issued with a notice to appear in court on Monday, August 10, and could face a maximum jail term of three years.

Police said initial COVID-19 tests returned negative results for both men.

More than 10,000 people have entered the NT since border rules were relaxed a week ago, with 376 people forced into supervised quarantine.

Commander Hollamby urged all arrivals to comply with regulations designed to protect the NT, which has never had community transmission of coronavirus, despite recording 32 COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began.

"Don't be selfish. Don't be greedy. Don't be self-centred, and, more importantly, respect the rights and the privileges of the Northern Territory where we don't have coronavirus," he said.

"Don't bring it in. Don't be patient zero."
'Keep our communities safe'
Independent MLA Yingiya Guyula, who represents the electorate of Nhulunbuy in east Arnhem Land, praised police for their efforts.

"I'm thankful that police have investigated this case and removed the risk from our communities and set a firm example for others," Mr Guyula said.

"But I'm concerned we don't have the resources we need to protect our communities.

"The Government needs to take this very seriously and provide more resources and better systems to support police and keep our communities safe, or keep the borders closed to keep the NT safe."

Chief Minister Michael Gunner yesterday told a parliamentary public accounts committee hearing that designated hotspot restrictions were likely to remain in place until a vaccine was developed, which he suggested was unlikely to occur before the end of next year.

"We're probably the gold standard in the world with how we handle quarantine," Mr Gunner said.

Despite the relatively low number of coronavirus cases recorded in the NT, last week's reopening of the NT's borders has left residents in some remote communities feeling vulnerable.

Tourists and non-essential travellers in Central Australia have been told to stay away from some sections of the popular Outback Way linking Uluru with the WA border.

The Central Land Council (CLC) yesterday advised that no transit permits would be issued for the Tjukaruru Road until further notice.

Permits for non-essential travel on the Great Central Road have also been suspended after the Ngaanyatjarra Council closed its communities, the CLC said.

Earlier in the week, the CLC said the Aputula Community, 300 kilometres south of Alice Springs, had asked tourists and non-essential travellers to avoid the area and not stop for fuel or services to help prevent the potential spread of coronavirus.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/nt-nhulunbuy-coronavirus-hotspot-breach-sparks-calls-for-action/12486626

Mutitjulu community calls for hotspot travellers to be stopped from entering the NT
24july-ayres-BB1778x-P.jpg


An Aboriginal group that called for if the Connellan Airport resumed flights from August 1 has agreed to its reopening — if a list of demand was met.

The Mutitjulu Community Aboriginal Corporation (MCAC) said it wanted to see travellers from hotspots barred from entering the Northern Territory completely and health checks for travellers.

"Health checks both at the airport of departure and arrival," said chief executive Thalia Bohl-van den Boogaard.

"And then if people do have symptoms or slip through the cracks the entire plane gets quarantined."

She highlighted the suggested rules should apply to all airports across the NT.Northern Territory at legal limits
However, NT Health Minister Natasha Fyles said, while she understood the concern from the community, stopping people from entering the NT was not something the Government could do.

"We're at the limits in terms of legally what we can do," Ms Fyles said.

"So, people entering the Territory, having to sign that border declaration form, and, if they've been in a hotspot, going into that quarantine and paying for it, is what we can do."

Minister Fyles also said current health advice stated there was a low risk of contracting COVID-19 on an aeroplane.

Ms Bohl-van den Boogaard said the risk of travellers from hotspots spreading the virus, particularly among the vulnerable Indigenous population of the NT, was too great.

"It's only a matter a time before somebody does go out of quarantine and gives the virus to somebody else, and it'll travel into the community," she said.

"There just has to be a better answer than, 'That's not possible'."

Ms Bohl-van den Boogaard said if the community's demands could not be met it would shut the national park.

Parks Australia and Voyages, the company that owns the airport and the resort, have both been contacted for comment.

Communities ask tourists to stay away
This week the Central Land Council (CLC) announced several communities have asked tourists to stay away due to concerns about COVID-19.

"The Aputula (Finke) community is asking tourists to please stay away; you are not currently welcome in Aputula," it wrote in a post on social media.

The CLC said it had also been advised by the Kaltukatjara (Docker River) community that it was also closed to non-essential travel.

"Please respect the community's wishes and do not stop in Kaltukatjara," it said.

It said no permits would be issued for those areas or the Great Central Road section from the West Australian border to Uluru.

There would also be no access to the Colson, Madigan or Hay River Tracks this year at the request of the Simpson Desert Aboriginal Land Trusts.

Ms Fyles said the Government supported the decision if the communities decided it was the best way forward.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/mutitjulu-community-calls-for-hotspot-travellers-to-be-stopped-from-entering-the-nt/ar-BB177uRG?ocid=msedgntp

25 July , no covid news .
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
24 July and 25 July in Tasmania

24 July

Tasmania to reopen it's borders to SA, NT and WA
On Friday 7th August Tasmania will reopen its borders to South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia using its "Good To Go" travel registration system.
Mandatory health checks will become a part of Tasmania's air and sea port arrivals protocol.
The Tasmanian Government has announced "safe travel bubbles" to allow travel between Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory from August 7.

Premier Peter Gutwein announced on Friday that the decision was made after a review and assessment by Public Health officials.

"Tasmania, along with five other jurisdictions has no community transmission (of COVID-19) and zero or very low case numbers," Mr Gutwein said.

"Tasmania is one of the safest places on the planet and in Public Health's view, so are South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia, which are equally as safe."

Mr Gutwein said additional border safety measures will be put in place at Tasmania's sea and air ports.

"The Good 2 Go app or paper form if people can't access the app will need to be filled out accurately in terms of where passengers may have been in the last 14 days and there will be fines of up to $16,800 or up to six months' jail for those who provide incorrect information."

People who have spent time in jurisdictions other than SA, WA or NT in the 14 days before their planned travel to Tasmania will not be able to access the travel bubble.

New safety measures will include a mandatory health check for every arriving passenger.

Anyone identified as being unwell or having symptoms will be required to be tested for COVID-19.

"This will be conducted at the airport and at our sea ports," Mr Gutwein said.

"After testing those people who have had the test must remain in hotel or home quarantine until they receive the results of those tests. Refusal to have a test will result in mandatory hotel quarantine for 14 days or they will be directed to return home on the next flight."

On June 12, Tasmanian health authorities declared the island as having no active cases.

After 65 days, that run ended when the state recorded its first coronavirus case in more than two months — a young woman in quarantine who had travelled from Victoria.

The new case brings the state's total to 227 cases, with 13 deaths.

Tasmania was the first state to close its borders, then introduced the country's toughest measures on March 19, requiring non-essential travellers to self isolate for 14 days.

On Friday Mr Gutwein said 85 per cent of tourists who came to Tasmania before the pandemic were from the eastern seaboard.

"I would not expect what we are doing at the moment will have a significant shifting of the dial in terms of tourism numbers but it is a first cautious step to ensure that we've got the systems and processes in place," he said.

Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan said a travel bubble between his state and Tasmania would not be possible under WA's border restrictions.

A spokeswoman said WA had no plans to change its restrictions before August 7.

Hobart Airport chief operating officer Matt Cocker said he was pleased with the Premier's announcement.

"We do have some flights that are operating into Adelaide and out of Adelaide to Hobart. We're certainly keen on talking to the airlines to build on future flights," Mr Cocker said.

Before the COVID-19 shutdown, direct flights between Hobart and Perth were operating.

Mr Gutwein said TT-Line will continue to operate under its current arrangements, bringing only people with a Tasmanian address or essential travellers into the state.

Essential workers coming into Tasmania from COVID-19 hotspot areas will also be subject to a mandatory test from next Friday.

#dayssinceEMBEDfull

Mr Gutwein said the State Government was taking a "position of caution" in relation to relaxing border restrictions with Queensland, NSW and the ACT.

He said he would give an update on August 7 about possible time-frames in relation to travel to and from those jurisdictions, but he said Tasmania would not open its borders to people from those places before August 14.

That means the proposed August 9 clash between AFL teams North Melbourne and Melbourne at Bellerive Oval cannot go ahead as both teams would be coming from Queensland.

A game between North Melbourne and Brisbane at Bellerive has been proposed for August 15.

"We simply won't put Tasmanians at risk and we'll continue to make decisions that we believe will keep Tasmanians safe," Mr Gutwein said.

North Melbourne chief executive Ben Amarfio said the club would work with the AFL to reschedule and move affected games to Queensland.

"We will obviously endeavour to secure replacement games in Hobart when the borders re-open to Queensland," Mr Amarfio said.

Mr Gutwein also announced travellers will have to pay for hotel quarantine themselves from next Friday, except in cases of "extreme hardship".

Exemptions may also be granted for people travelling to for medical treatment not available in Tasmania.

Travellers requiring hotel quarantine will be charged $2,800 per person. A family rate is being determined and will be announced early next week.

Mr Gutwein said he would not hesitate to implement restrictions if necessary.

"If we need to step back from any of these first three jurisdictions that we're talking about, Public Health can restrict a location, a suburb, a municipality, or a state within 30 minutes if necessary. We will ensure that we keep Tasmanians safe."

Mr Gutwein said it would be some time before Tasmania's border with Victoria could be reopened.

"We'll continue to monitor that situation on a weekly and monthly basis," he said.

More details about the current measures are available at the Tasmanian Government's coronavirus information website.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/tasmania-to-reopen-it-s-borders-to-sa-nt-and-wa/vi-BB177VOo?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-24/premier-peter-gutwein-says-the-travel-bubbles-start-august-7/12490450?nw=0
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-border-closures-relaxed-for-sa-wa-nt-travellers-tasmanian-premier-gutwein-announces/ar-BB177RDf?ocid=msedgntp


Tasmania's coronavirus border closures mean Hobart AFL match won't go ahead
he AFL will be forced to rejig its fixtures again with Tasmania to keep its borders closed to people travelling from Queensland.

Tasmania Premier Peter Gutwein confirmed this afternoon the round-11 match between North Melbourne and Melbourne will not be able to take place on August 9 at Hobart's Bellerive Oval.

Mr Gutwein did not address the Kangaroos' planned match with Brisbane in Hobart on August 15, but that match is also likely to be moved to another state.

The AFL announced on Tuesday night it had scheduled two North Melbourne home matches for Bellerive Oval as part of its fixture announcement for rounds nine to 12.

Most of Victoria's 10 clubs are temporarily based in Queensland, alongside the Brisbane and Gold Coast teams.

"The decision that has been arrived at is that for North Melbourne and Melbourne supporters, unfortunately, they won't be playing here on the ninth of August," Mr Gutwein told a media conference in Hobart.

"We will not do anything that we believe will put the health of Tasmanians at risk. In terms of the AFL, that is the least of my considerations.

"I would hope that AFL could be played here later in the year but that will largely be dependent upon the circumstances of the states where the teams are based."

North Melbourne chief executive Ben Amarfio said the club would liaise with the AFL about where the match against the Demons would now be hosted.

"We will work with the AFL to reschedule any affected games to Queensland and we will obviously endeavour to secure replacement games in Hobart when the borders re-open to Queensland," he said in a club statement.

"The AFL has said all along that we must remain flexible and agile as the environment is ever-changing.

"We will make the necessary changes and our team will adapt accordingly."

Mr Gutwein said Tasmania would have "safe travel bubbles" with Western Australia, South Australia and Northern Territory from August 7.

Tasmania will not open its borders to people from Queensland or New South Wales until at least August 14, with the situation to be reassessed next month.Prior to the Tasmanian Government's announcement this afternoon, the AFL had said playing matches in Tasmania was a priority for the league.
"We have been consistent in our desire to get matches in Tasmania," AFL general manager of clubs and broadcasting Travis Auld said on Tuesday.
"Both the AFL and North Melbourne are heavily invested into footy in Hobart and we are very happy for the state and the city to host two matches."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/sport/more-sports/tasmania-s-coronavirus-border-closures-mean-hobart-afl-match-won-t-go-ahead/ar-BB1783O0?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/sport/afl/afl-game-in-tassie-can-t-go-ahead-premier/ar-BB177SFU?ocid=msedgntp

25 July
300 properties were removed from short stay platforms in Tasmania for not meeting state regulations
The Tasmanian Government released its latest report on short stay accommodation in the state.
It found that 309 properties were removed from short stay platforms because they did not comply with regulations.
The report looked at data from 5054 properties listed between January 1 2020 and March 31 2020.

A new report from the Tasmanian government found 309 properties were removed from short stay platforms because they didn't comply with regulations.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/money/realestate/300-properties-were-removed-from-short-stay-platforms-in-tasmania-for-not-meeting-state-regulations/ar-BB177rwD?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
25 July in QLD


Queensland's licensed venues scramble to enforce no-standing rule as coronavirus restrictions return
Queensland COVID-19 snapshot:
Confirmed cases so far: 1,076
Deaths: 6
Key points:
Queensland's Deputy Commissioner is concerned punters are flouting social distancing rules
Police urge patrons to head to pubs and clubs early and avoid queues
One Brisbane venue has made a "no stranger snogging stick"

he Queensland Hotels Association says enforcing a new no-standing rule in licensed venues at short notice has been "virtually impossible".Queensland's Chief Health Officer yesterday reimposed physical distancing restrictions, forcing the patrons to sit at bars, restaurants and hotels, unless ordering a drink.

Hotels Association chief executive Bernie Hogan was "baffled and surprised" by the sudden change, given venues only operated at 25 per cent capacity already.

"The official notice didn't come out until late in the day yesterday," he said.

"It's virtually impossible to get that across.

"We've got 900 members from every point of the state, it's impossible to have them all up to speed.

"So I've no doubt there were members of ours who really struggled with it all last night who didn't understand what was happening.

"'No further social distancing restrictions ahead'
The Queensland Police Service said teams inspected more than 200 venues across the state during the night.

No fines were issued, however a police spokesperson said "a few issues were identified, with advice and warnings issued".Health Minister Steven Miles said authorities took a more educative approach last night, given the short notice.

"But where there are flagrant, repeated breaches of those restrictions, that's when we apply fines," he said.

Mr Miles said further re-introduction of social distancing restrictions was not on the Government's radar.

"There's nothing under active consideration," Mr Miles said.

Clubs Queensland acting chief executive Dan Nipperess said it was difficult to train staff for the change at such short notice."But I think the Queensland public are very adaptive to these sorts of things," he said.

"They want to do the right thing and over the last couple of months, they have been doing that."

New Deputy Chief Health Officer appointed
Queensland Health's communicable diseases branch executive director, Dr Sonya Bennett, has been appointed to the newly-created position of Deputy Chief Health Officer, serving under Dr Jeannette Young.

Dr Bennett defended the need for social distancing restrictions.If there was a case that we didn't know was present, as has occurred in New South Wales, then it prevents that transmission risk and the risk of a bigger outbreak."

In the lead-up to the change, police said patron behaviour had been concerning, with many people flouting the 1.5m distancing rule, especially while waiting in queues outside on busy weekends.

Deputy Commissioner Steve Gollschewski said some venues also hadn't been compliant with COVID-19 guidelines.

e said further lockdowns were possible in Queensland if people failed to heed the warnings.

"If people don't get the message, of course we'll look at whether enforcement action needs to be taken," he said.

'No-snogging stick' at the ready
25jukly-snoggingg-stick-12491234-3x2-xlarge.jpg

The snogging stick.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-brisbane-nightclub-takes-unusual-steps-to-enforce-social-distancing-rules/vi-BB1787LY?ocid=msedgntp

Chief Superintendent Steve Dabinett said patrons would need to be patient, or take a different approach if heading out to venues.

"If the club is busy and you're in a line, maybe go and find somewhere else … or get there early and get in.""We've got our social distancing stick here, we've also got our no-stranger-snogging stick."

"Nobody likes being hit with the naughty stick, even though it's soft, [and] we'll certainly be using it to keep everyone apart."

Venue operators have told the ABC they'll do their best to force patrons to comply, with security and staff ensuring patrons are seated when not ordering drinks and remain socially distanced in queues.
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-25/coronavirus-queensland-restrictions-pubs-clubs-no-standing-rule/12489048
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/qld-govt-considers-tougher-social-distancing-measures/ar-BB17aAxQ?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
25 July across the moat in NZ

Major manhunt after mother and her four children escape NZ quarantine
Police have been forced to chase down five people after they escaped from hotel quarantine in New Zealand overnight.

A mother, 37, and her children aged 12, 15, 17 and 18 forced open a window and climbed a six-foot fence before running from the Distinction Hotel in Hamilton about 7pm on Friday night.

Four of the five were caught by police within hours and are due to appear before the district court and youth court in Hamilton.

The 17-year-old boy reportedly escaped capture until he was found in Auckland in the early hours of Saturday following a major manhunt.

All five escapees are expected to face court charged with breaching the coronavirus health act.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/major-manhunt-after-mother-and-her-four-children-escape-nz-quarantine/ar-BB179QIO?ocid=msedgntp

25 July - Across the moat in PNG

'We don't have enough beds': PNG hospitals braces for Covid-19 surge
Papua New Guinea’s Covid-19 outbreak could overwhelm its health system within days, the country’s pandemic chief has warned, as masks have been made compulsory in the capital, and the government has called in the World Health Organization and the military for help.

PNG’s pandemic response controller, David Manning, said a dedicated isolation unit established in the capital Port Moresby to treat Covid-19 could soon be overwhelmed if current infections trends continue.

The largest number of infections are of healthcare workers who have been working in a Covid-19 testing lab, and have been exposed.

Related: First coronavirus-linked death in Melanesia as Papua New Guinea outbreak spreads

“The capacity at the [capital’s] emergency ward for isolation is 70,” Manning said, “and with the current rate of infection per day and using increased testing modelling, this has the potential to be reached by the end of this month.”

The PNG government has asked the WHO for help, saying there was “an urgent need” for emergency health workers to assist the country in managing a forecast surge in cases, and to administer isolation facilities.

“We are also discussing with the PNG defence force to assist... the health department. We have always said we don’t have adequate facilities,” Manning said.

The governor of Port Moresby, Powes Parkop, told Australia’s ABC that the capital faced “a situation that we dreaded, simply because of the impact of the virus and also our capacity to respond”.

“We simply don’t have the capacity, we don’t have enough space in isolation facilities, in the hospital, we don’t have enough medical officers and we don’t have enough equipment,” he said.

By global standards, PNG’s known Covid-19 infections remain low - with just 32 confirmed cases, but it has nearly trebled in just over a week - up from 11 on 16 July.

There are also significant concerns that infection rates are far higher than reported, because of low testing rates, particularly in remote areas. Manning has conceded, outside of Port Moresby, testing has been “very limited”. A nationwide testing sweep during the country’s declared state of emergency found at least 300 people with Covid-19 antibodies: it appears they have had the disease and recovered.

Covid-19 has been linked to only one death in PNG, that of a 48-year-old woman suffering stage four cancer. Doctors said she died with the novel coronavirus and her death “may have been complicated by Covid-19”.

PNG had gone more than a month without reporting any new cases of Covid, before two major clusters, first at the country’s military headquarters, Murray Barracks, and then at Port Moresby general hospital.

Eight of the country’s cases are healthcare workers at the hospital laboratory where tests are conducted, while a further eight are the family members and close contacts of those workers.

Prime minister, James Marape, has ordered an inquiry into why so many healthcare workers were becoming infected.

“All healthcare workers are supposed to be equipped and all health facilities have been supplied with personal protective equipment. Something went wrong somewhere and they became exposed.”

Marape announced masks would be compulsory outside the home in Port Moresby, a city where more than half of the nearly 500,000 population live in densely crowded unofficial settlements where social distancing is difficult.

“The national government will partner with the national capital district commission and the churches to ensure all our city residents are supplied masks for use when they are moving around,” Marape said.

He said officials were “not playing games or fun, neither politics nor business” and that the global outbreak – already surpassing 15m infections, and 600,000 deaths – was “rising every day”.

Related: Delay pregnancy for two years: Papua New Guinea doctor delivers coronavirus warning

“Coronavirus is present in the country, more so our nation’s capital city and we must be careful. It is the most infectious of diseases and can be easily transmitted so all persons living in PNG must join in this fight to stop Covid-19 from spreading.”

Manning has also announced new social distancing restrictions under the controversial National Health Emergency Act, which gives the government sweeping powers to restrict movement and activity.

The latest tranche has imposed an immediate ban on gatherings of over 100 people, and the closure of all nightclubs and sporting clubs. Religious services are allowed to continue but must comply with health protocols.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/world/we-don-t-have-enough-beds-png-hospitals-braces-for-covid-19-surge/ar-BB179ZZO?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
26-Jul
Australia's worse day for covid19 deaths so far since pandemic reached our shores.

New cases o/night in Vic = 459
New cases 0/night in NSW = 14
New cases o/night in NSW & Vic = 473
Total new cases in NSW & Vic since 10 June = 7343

There are currently 4400 active cases.
There are 241 cases currently in hospital.
There are 46 in ICUs.

26july.png

Encouraging signs that the epidemiological curve is starting to flatten over the last 10 days.
A run of more than 6 datum is good indication that this observation is not just due to noise in the "signal" ( it is a very noisey sign if you at each day's case numbers ) , the epidemiological curve has the effect of smoothing out the noise ).

Australian daily case numbers so far
26july-australia.png


There are 381 medical and hospital staff in isolation in Victoria after positive tests .
There are 79 ambulance workers in isolation in Victoria after positive tests.
< ABC 7pm News >
Hospital case loads
26july-shospital.png


Deaths day by day
26july-deaths.png


Death demographics
26july-death-demographics.png


Deaths by cluster
26july-deaths-by-cluster.png


Confirmed cases' demographics
26july-demographics-of-cases.png
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
26 July in Victoria

Victoria records 459 new coronavirus cases and 10 deaths in Australia’s deadliest day in pandemic
A national record of 10 Covid-19 deaths was reported in Victoria on Sunday, including a man aged in his 40s, with seven of those deaths linked to aged care.
They were two women in their 80s and one in her 70s. Three men in their 70s, two in their 80s, one in his 60s and one in his 40s also died.

The premier, Daniel Andrews, also announced that 459 more cases of the virus had been identified since Saturday, and acknowledged the toll the virus was having among healthcare workers who were being infected or furloughed after being exposed.
The state’s death toll has now risen to 71, the highest in the country.

There are now 381 healthcare workers with active cases of the virus, the premier said.

“That is a significant challenge, given, whilst we have overall capacity and we’ve worked very hard all throughout the year to grow the number of people that can be available for our fight against this virus in a clinical sense, whenever we have clinical staff and other critical health workers away, furloughed because they are a close contact or in fact as an active case, that does put some additional pressure on our system,” he said.
Retired health staff and paramedics were among those now being called on to address the health worker gap.

More than 4,000 current and retired nurses and midwives and 800 other skilled healthcare workers who may have left the workforce to undertake research or for a break are being trained to again be deployed across the health system, Andrews said.

From Monday, ADF personnel will begin training with Ambulance Victoria, including driver training and proper personal protective equipment protocol.
Paramedics are among those who have been infected by the virus in recent weeks, with more than 60 staff off work due to being infected or exposed to Covid-19.There are 228 Victorians in hospital and 42 of those are receiving intensive care.
“There are some 560 active cases in aged care. The exact number of settings will be finalised in that release later today.

“That is a significant challenge, given, whilst we have overall capacity and we’ve worked very hard throughout the year to grow the number of people that can be available for our fight against this virus in a clinical sense, whenever we have clinical staff and other critical health workers away, furloughed because they are a close contact or in fact as an active case, that does put some additional pressure on our system."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-records-highest-daily-covid-death-toll/ar-BB17bUIt?ocid=msedgntp

With a high number of cases still being announced more than 2.5 weeks into the lockdown announced for metropolitan Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire, Andrews did not rule out that the lockdown may need to be extended beyond 6 weeks. “I will say is these things change rapidly, but these numbers are far too high,” the premier said.

He said while it was reassuring cases weren’t “doubling” and growing exponentially, “we’ve got to drive these numbers down”.

The premier implored Victorians to continue to get tested, stay home when sick, and follow the public health restrictions including wearing a mask.
A graphic public health advertising campaign was launched on Sunday and was rolled out across radio, television and social media, featuring Covid-19 survivors who describe having the virus as being “like drowning”.

“I had coughing fits that went for one to two minutes. I was put in an induced coma, the doctors thought that I was going to die,” a man in his middle age says in one of the videos. “It is very real.”

Andrews said on Sunday: “There are 10 families that are going to be burying someone in the next few days.”

He said police would use discretion for anyone who was confused by the new regulations, but "if you are just making a selfish choice", police would issue fines.
"If you are just making a selfish choice about your alleged personal liberty, quoting some, I don't know who , or something you've read on some website - this is not about human rights," he said
“Wear a mask,” he said. “It’s not too much to ask.
"If you don't, you will get fined and that is as it should be."
.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/ten-new-deaths-as-victoria-records-458-new-coronavirus-cases/ar-BB17bYW7?ocid=msedgntp

Ten families are currently planning funerals. And the youngest among them, they have lost someone in their 40s. It can’t get any more serious than that. Please wear a mask. Everyone. And if you don’t, you will get fined. And that’s exactly as it should be.”Of the 10 deaths, 7 were in aged care.
The transient and insecure nature of the aged care and healthcare work forces has been under the spotlight since Victoria’s second wave began. Casual workers often work multiple jobs across different health and aged care facilities, increasing the chance of virus spread. Many cannot afford to take time off work while sick or awaiting a Covid-19 test result, prompting the premier to last week announce a $300 payment to any Victorian who has taken a test and without access to sick leave so they can isolate without their income being as severely affected.

Andrews said the crisis in the state had highlighted the need for a national discussion about the causal workforce. Insecure and casual work “is a structural weakness in our economy that has been very graphically exposed” through the pandemic, he said.

“Insecure work is no good for public health … that is something we have to return to, not just as Victorians, but perhaps at a national level once this is over,” he said.

Victoria conducted 42,573 tests yesterday, breaking its record for the most tests conducted in a single day.
It is "by far and away" the most number of tests conducted on a single day, Mr Andrews said.
"That is a very impressive effort and we are very grateful to each and every Victorian coming forward and getting tested," he said.
"That is critical to tracking this virus and then being able to contain it."

He noted that interstate health authorities were assisting in the mammoth testing effort.


.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-records-459-new-cases-of-covid-19/vi-BB17bNmj?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-records-459-new-coronavirus-cases-and-10-deaths-in-australia-s-deadliest-day-in-pandemic/ar-BB17c9bY?ocid=msedgntp

Federal Government sets up aged care response centre to deal with Covid-19 surge in Victoria
The federal government has launched a specialist aged care response centre to address the surging number of Covid-19 cases spreading through Victorian facilities, as authorities acknowledge measures taken to quash the state’s second wave of the virus have not yet led to lower numbers.

Victoria recorded 357 new Covid-19 cases on Saturday, a continuation of high numbers that the chief health officer, Brett Sutton, described as “pretty stubborn to shift”, with a further 5 deaths in the state taking Australia’s pandemic death toll to 145.

The government’s announcement came as most other states and territories saw no increases in cases, with the exception of New South Wales, which recorded 15 new Covid-19 cases amid a further crackdown on restriction compliance.

However, the growth in Victorian numbers means there are 538 cases among residents and staff across 38 aged care facilities in the state, with the new Victorian aged care response centre established to centrally coordinate quality control of the workforce in facilities experiencing outbreaks.

Rapidly responding to outbreaks as they are identified and improving communications to family members of affected residents will also be the focus of the new centre, which will be jointly managed by Emergency Management Australia and Victoria Health. It will also work with aged care providers to ensure casual staff in facilities aren’t working across more than one facility.
The establishment of the aged care response centre comes as experts in the sector blame undertrained casual workers who are made to move between homes to make a living, calling the current outbreaks in facilities “absolutely foreseeable”.

Announcing the centre on Saturday, the federal health minister, Greg Hunt, said the centre “is a very important step forward in helping to coordinate, helping to ensure rapid response where these cases are occurring”.
The new centre will be jointly managed by Emergency Management Australia, Emergency Management Victoria and VicHealth.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said it would draw together the Australian Defence Force, Federal and State governments, the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commissioner's team, clinical leaders, geriatric support and emergency management.

"Its tasks will include quality control workforce provisions, prevention of outbreaks, rapid response, supporting provider communications to families and others," Mr Hunt said.

"That is a very important step forward in helping coordinate, and helping to ensure a rapid response where these cases are occurring."

Earlier this month, the Federal Government made masks compulsory for aged care workers in the lockdown zone and said it was deploying 750,000 masks, face shields and gowns in Victoria.

This was on top of 1.35 million items of personal protective equipment (PPE) already supplied to Victorian aged care services since February, Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck said.

Workers have been brought in from interstate to help the Victorian efforts because of workers being furloughed due to testing positive to COVID-19, or being close contacts of people who had.

But it has led to stories of disorganisation and health guidelines not being followed, at St Basil's in Fawkner.

Visitors restricted, face coverings mandatory
On Wednesday night, for aged care, drug and alcohol, homeless and disability support centres, along with short-term accommodation and assistance dwellings.

Visitor limits were introduced, and all guests are now required to wear masks or face coverings.

A major concern for authorities is workers completing shifts at multiple locations.

Mr Andrews said his Government was working closely with the Federal Government, aged care providers and unions to try and stop the practice for the time being.

"That obviously doesn't eliminate, but significantly reduces, the risk of the virus being transmitted by staff from one setting to another," he said
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/vic-clamps-down-on-aged-care-as-covid-19-fears-grow/ar-BB17bKV7?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/as-victoria-s-aged-care-coronavirus-cases-soar-past-500-governments-are-scrambling-to-halt-the-crisis/ar-BB17bNUG?ocid=msedgntp

He also announced there were now 1,470 ADF personnel assisting with Victoria’s Covid-19 response, including knocking on the front doors of Victorians who have not answered phone calls from contact tracers.
Earlier in the week, the Premier revealed 90 % of Victorians who ended up testing positive did not self-isolate when they first started feeling sick. About 1/2 flouted the rules as they waited for their test results to return.
But he also acknowledged that in many cases, these were shift workers who lived pay cheque to pay cheque.
Over 1,000 ADF personnel have joined Vic. Health to ensure COVID-19 tests and quarantining are being carried out safely.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/adf-aiding-in-vic-fight-against-covid-19/vi-BB17bUHH?ocid=msedgntp
<< IMO Victoria Police needs to come down on these people like a sledge hammer and stop being so forgiving about these breaches , everyone now knows what is required , no more excuses >>

Andrews says hospitals can handle current levels
All residents were evacuated to a private hospital from the Menarock Life Aged Care Centre after an outbreak this month, including those who had not tested positive. But that outbreak posed "unique challenges", Mr Colbeck said, and the Federal and State Governments are not taking the same approach with other clusters.

Instead, patients are transferred to hospital on a case-by-case basis."Moving frail, aged people out of nursing homes is not a good thing to do unless you absolutely have to," Mr Andrews said earlier in the week.

Some doctors disagree, including the head of the Australian Medical Association, and say more needs to be done to protect the elderly in nursing homes.

“As difficult and as challenging as it is, my overwhelming view is that we will see over time, not immediately, these numbers fall.”

Hunt also reflected that Victorian numbers were “stable, but significant”, adding that he thought it was inevitable that further lives would be lost.

With Victoria now dealing with nearly 4,000 coronavirus cases across the state, the Premier and Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton are bracing for an increase in hospitalisations in the weeks ahead.

"I just want to assure all Victorians, we have bought up big," Mr Andrews said. "We have got adequate supplies of shields and masks and gowns and gloves. We have the sort of equipment that can turn any hospital bed into a high-dependency bed or an intensive care bed."

Mr Andrews said staff numbers were "sufficient", but it would be the state's "biggest challenge" as more health workers became infected with coronavirus.
"That is why during the first wave we spent a lot of time and effort training up additional staff, making sure that we had that a secondary workforce that we could fall back on," he said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-australia-government-sets-up-aged-care-response-centre-to-deal-with-covid-19-surge-in-victoria/ar-BB17amLA?ocid=msedgntp

Aged care complaints up by almost 50 per cent since virus outbreak
Complaints to the aged care watchdog have surged almost 50 percent as COVID-19 outbreaks cripple the sector.

New figures obtained by Labor has revealed 747 complaints were made in April alone, which is up from 506 at the start of the year.
By mid-May, another 386 admissions were made.

Many of the complaints were related to families being unable to visit loved ones due to lockdown restrictions , and residents pushing back due feelings of imprisonment and who were stressed by changes made to keep them safe and virus free .
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/aged-care-complaints-up-by-almost-50-per-cent-since-virus-outbreak/ar-BB17bLvM?ocid=msedgntp

Families of St Basil's Homes for the Aged residents fear for their loved ones as coronavirus outbreak grows
Families of residents of a Melbourne nursing home that has been linked to 74 coronavirus cases have expressed anger and fear about the handling of the outbreak in the facility.

John Atzarakis was told on Tuesday his mother, 77-year-old Fotini Atzarakis, would not survive the coronavirus infection she picked up at St Basil's Homes for the Aged in Fawkner, in Melbourne's north.

Despite the predictions of doctors at the Austin Hospital where she is being treated with maximum oxygen on a ventilator in the ICU , Mr Atzarakis's mother has so far defied the odds. He attributes that to her determined spirit, which has already seen her survive 14 years of Parkinson's disease.
"I just, I wish she would have had the opportunity to live a few more years and be with us," he said.
"But it's just not going to be the case because of this."

One more coronavirus infection was linked to St Basil's on Saturday, bringing the total number of cases linked to the home to 74. It is the largest of Victoria's aged care outbreaks, which account for 536 of the state's almost 4,000 active cases.

It was nearly one month ago that Mr Atzarakis's family made the decision to check his mother into St Basil's for a spell of respite care. But as the latest surge of infections in Melbourne escalated, Mr Atzarakis said his family saw worrying signs, including an absence of mask-wearing among staff inside the Fawkner home.
Once the outbreak took hold, he said the home was slow to update families and staff told his sister they were waiting for advice from the health department before running full tests on every staff member and resident.
He believes a lack of leadership from the managers at St Basil's contributed to the outbreak that is almost certain to claim the life of his mother. "It's killing the whole family, we're all suffering because of something that could have been prevented and has happened in our eyes because people did not take ownership," he said.
"I would have liked for them to test everyone immediately, I would have liked for everyone to wear protective masks from the day that coronavirus broke out, which was in March
<< IMO it's appalling incompetence to not have adopted the improved infection control practices that came out the age care clusters in NSW , masks are cheap , as are Perspex screens and most the family members would have been happy to have restrictions placed on access to their loved ones if these were designed to protect these same loved ones >>
.
"They're responsible, they're accountable for people's lives." Mr Atzarakis also urged the general community to grasp the seriousness of the pandemic.
"Just look after yourself and your family. Don't go anywhere if you don't have to," he said.
"People have to prioritise their health first. Your hip pocket means nothing if you're not going to be alive to enjoy it."

St Basil's says protective equipment adopted when federal advice changed
<< ScoMo and the CMO were very tardy in adopting best practices regards face masks outside the clinical setting , despite clear scientific proof of the benefits become published as back as April >>

In a statement to families posted online, St Basil's chairman Konstantin Kontis said the aged care home's staff were "extremely distressed at the loss of our loved residents" and was sharing in the grief of those who had lost a friend or relative.
He also said personal protective equipment (PPE) became compulsory for all staff, on every shift from July 13, the same day federal health advice changed to make mask use in aged care homes mandatory.
"If now, using 20/20 hindsight, it is alleged that this was too late, that is no fault of our own," he said.
"We have camera vision to prove our contention for all shifts since that date."
Mr Kontis said all staff from St Basil's had been placed into quarantine and had been forced to leave at 9:00am on Wednesday to hand over to a completely new team appointed by health authorities.
He acknowledged a "gap" in communication with families as staff were removed from the home on Wednesday, but said he understood all relatives' families had since been back in regular contact.
However, he said that since St Basil's staff were sent home and a new team brought in, there had been "very limited" information provided back to the original team, hampering their ability to keep families up to date on the situation.
Mr Kontis said he was working with the Department of Health to bring videoconferencing between families and residents back online.

Sudden staffing swap left language barriers and confusion, tester says
Pathology worker "Julie", who did not want her real name used, was hired as a contractor last week to begin testing residents at aged care homes across Melbourne.

She was at St Basil's on Thursday, after the staffing swap had occurred, and said the environment was confusing and chaotic. "St Basil's was probably the worst place I've been to," she said.
"We weren't checked for our temperature or flu shot. The basic protocols weren't dealt with."

Julie alleged there had been no separation of residents who had tested positive or negative while she was there, and she saw some workers reusing masks and contaminating clean PPE with used masks.

She said testing at the home could not be finished on Thursday because identifying patients was almost impossible due to language barriers and a lack of information provided by management."We had no idea who they were. We can't send off random samples of people," she said. "Staff didn't know who was meant to be in which bed."

Julie fears nothing has been learnt after the outbreak at aged care home Newmarch House in Sydney, which cost 19 lives.
<< IMO she's on the money there and this has all been driven by the age care provider model here in Australia where everything is charged back to the residents at hyper inflated prices and it's all driven by maximum profit per resident. PPE cost money , handsanitizer and hospital detergent disinfectants that are more effective than off the chemist / department shelves disinfectants , so not procured. No inhouse doctors or even nurse practitioners or registered nurses on site 24/7 and little effort made by local GPs to check the welfare and conditions and practices their patients are exposed to. Too much reliance on poorly trained unqualified staff who are clueless .>>

It is understood after all permanent staff at the home were stood down, they were replaced by staff from Aspen Medical, the company that was brought in to provide emergency medical care at Newmarch House.

In a statement, Federal Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck said Aspen Medical staff were working at St Basil's "helping to ensure strict adherence to infection prevention and control protocols including the use of PPE, hand hygiene, and cleaning".

"Arrangements are in place for orientation and induction of all staff at the beginning of each shift in infection control protocol and PPE use, to ensure there is no ongoing transmission," the statement said.

Senator Colbeck said clinicians and personal care workers at the home were being supported by specialist staff provided by the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), and if further medical or nursing care was needed the Commonwealth would work with DHHS to ensure it was provided without delay.

Senator Colbeck said both the Commonwealth and Victorian governments were taking all possible steps to ensure that families of residents were kept up to date about the situation at the home and in relation to their loved one.

Christine Golding's 84-year-old mother Efraxia is still inside the home.
Ms Golding has not talked to her mother since Monday and is becoming increasingly concerned about her welfare.
"My mother needs stimulation, she needs human contact. She has dietary needs and she's just being fed and watered," she said.

After almost a week of calling the home, Ms Golding was told on Saturday morning her mother had tested negative to the virus, but she was told nothing else about her condition.
"It's absolutely difficult, I just rang and thought they would be proactive but it's just crickets," she said.
"We are dying to get in there. I'm very stressed and really concerned."
<< IMO there is little wonder why families are "rescuing" their elderly to care for them in their own homes or to take to perceived better facilities .

I think the aged care industry has shot itself in it's own foot here and elsewhere ( many countries ) and many seniors will be very reluctant to ever go into a age care home , and will end up demanding they stay in their own homes or they live a chose son or daughter and their family to see out their sunset years ( this has got to be better for everyone in the family and is a return to traditional family customs from the 19th and up til the 1950s.) >>


Ms Golding said she was told all information about residents would be relayed to her via a social worker in Adelaide and a video call with her mother would be available on Monday.

The social worker told Ms Golding and her husband that she had a virtual meeting with management from the home every day at 8:30am, but had not been able to get answers to her questions.

"How are our parents? Have they been tested? They all have different dietary requirements. Are they in bed? Are they taking their medication? She said she has no answers," Ms Golding said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/families-of-st-basil-s-homes-for-the-aged-residents-fear-for-their-loved-ones-as-coronavirus-outbreak-grows/ar-BB17aUwu?ocid=msedgntp

Concerns COVID result lags are hindering Victoria's attempts to suppress the virus
Some Victorians are waiting up to 7 days for their COVID-19 tests results back, hindering the state’s ability to suppress the novel coronavirus.

Mr Clennell said some Victorian communities are taking matters into their own hands.

"The local Liberal state MP in the Colac region is Richard Riordan, he told me yesterday that people are waiting 6 to 7 days to be identified as a close contact and the same amount of time for test results,” Mr Clennell said. “Ultimately the community has had to take the matter into their own hands.
"With the local abattoir identifying a case, the federal government got involved deploying the private sector for testing workers from there even before the state health department got involved last week.”

Mr Clennell said authorities across Australia are concerned the Melbourne outbreak will endanger the economy.
“I also want to reveal that the NSW Police Commissioner Mick Fuller recently told his troops on the NSW Victorian border operation that they could be there until the end of the year,” he said.

“NSW is still petrified that the Victorian outbreak will spread and endanger their economy and plenty of ministers in the federal government are concerned that could drag down the entire national economy.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/concerns-covid-result-lags-are-hindering-victoria-s-attempts-to-suppress-the-virus/ar-BB17bTox?ocid=msedgntp

Where the virus is in Victoria
Here's the breakdown on where Victoria's active cases are

There is more information on the DHHS website.

WYNDHAM = 476
BRIMBANK = 515
HUME = 354
MELBOURNE = 279
MOONEE VALLEY = 217
MORELAND = 271
WHITTLESEA = 262
MELTON = 211
CASEY = 157
BANYULE = 153
YARRA = 133
MARIBYRNONG = 128
DAREBIN = 96
STONNINGTON = 40
BOROONDARA = 52
HOBSONS BAY = 76
MONASH = 53
GREATER DANDENONG = 87
PORT PHILLIP = 44
GREATER GEELONG = 31
WHITEHORSE = 55
GLEN EIRA = 31
MANNINGHAM = 38
KINGSTON = 46
MORNINGTON PENINSULA = 13
FRANKSTON = 28
YARRA RANGES = 37
BAYSIDE = 30
NILLUMBIK = 34
KNOX = 33
CARDINIA = 23
COLAC OTWAY = 47
MAROONDAH = 24
MITCHELL = 11
BALLARAT = 11
MACEDON RANGES = 8
GREATER SHEPPARTON = 1
GREATER BENDIGO = 6
SURF COAST = 4
LATROBE = 4
MOORABOOL = 9
HORSHAM = 7
BAW BAW = 3
GOLDEN PLAINS = 5
SOUTH GIPPSLAND = 4
GLENELG = 6
MOUNT ALEXANDER = 1
BASS COAST = 1
SWAN HILL = 2
WARRNAMBOOL = 1
LODDON = 2
MANSFIELD = 1
EAST GIPPSLAND = 1
UNKNOWN = 63
INTERSTATE = 8
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-australia-live-news-daniel-andrews-pleads-with-young-victorians-to-not-risk-lives/ar-BB17bLMM?ocid=msedgntp

Victoria’s Premier slams mask flouters
Victoria’s Premier has slammed Melburnians who refuse to wear a face covering on the city's first weekend of the rule.

Covidiot Publicity Stunt of a very nasty kind
Bunnings has described the treatment of its staff members, who were threatened with legal action when asking a woman in Victoria to wear a mask, as "completely unacceptable".

The shopper started filming when a Bunnings worker asked if she had a mask as she entered the Melbourne hardware store in south east Melbourne yesterday.
"You are not authorised to ask me or question me about it," she told the female staff member, who directed her to a manager.

Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire became a mandatory mask zone on Wednesday.
The woman was told she would need a medical certificate to be exempt from wearing a mask, while another staff member explained it was a condition of entry into the store.

"You're discriminating against me," she said in footage uploaded online.

The woman threatened to have the workers sued, while claiming being asked to wear a mask was a breach of her human rights.


"It is in breach of the 1948 charter of human rights to discriminate against men and women," she said.
<< This is the Covidiot rubbish she was referring to like it was ACTUALLY real:
26july-bs-cited-by-bunnings-covidiot.png

published on a blog called TheShovel who's owner claimed it was a joke . Yeh sure it was .

The actual articles See the actual text from https://un.org/en/udhrbook/pdf/udhr_booklet_en_web.pdf
extracts
1948-ARTICLE-05.png

1948-ARTCTLE-06.png

>>
"I don't care it doesn't apply to me," she said.
The staff member calmly explained she was not being targeted and that the mask rule applied to everyone.

"I am going to continue going in here and getting what I need because it is unlawful to do that.

"It is my right as a living woman to do whatever I want."

Bunnings Chief Operating Officer Deb Poole said abuse towards staff attempting to implement well-established processes to protect both staff and customers would not be tolerated.

"The customer's behaviour towards our team was completely unacceptable and we're proud of the way our team calmly and professionally handled the situation," Ms Poole said.

"The vast majority of customers visiting our Melbourne stores are doing the right thing and wearing a mask, which is required under the law and our conditions of entry."

The disgruntled shopper refused to stop filming staff and later also recorded an interaction with police, where she also added to her problems (now with the cops) by refusing to provide her name and address.

"You don't know what you are talking about right now," the woman argued.

"I don't need to give you anything."

She claimed to fear for her life as the interviewing officers were armed with guns before threatening to sue them for $60,000 each.

The woman was later filmed struggling with police and shouting "this is unlawful" as she appeared to be arrested.

In further footage of the interaction with police, a Sergeant explained the woman could be taken into custody for refusing to provide her details when being accused of contravention of legislation to wear a mask.

The Sergeant was later seen telling the woman she was free to go after establishing she had a medical exemption.
<< I saw the footage of the interaction with the cop and he was at all times calm and professional and to the point , I think he needs a medal and a pay rise and promotion in reward for how well he handled this stupid selfish copycat publicity seeking covidiot who did this entirely as a publicity stunt .

DISGUSTING and nasty way to treat hardware shop employees and a cop.
>>

Victoria Police refused to comment on the individual case.
"We are aware of a number of videos circulating," a police spokesperson told 9News.
<< I saw the video she or someone who put her up this stunt posted on Twitter , my response was , well likely to get me banned here if I repeat it , and I promptly reported the poster and blocked them after I got in my barbs and told her what I thought of her behavior - I didn't hold back >>

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth has likened the Bunnings incident with "intolerable and completely unacceptable" threats made to workers in hospitals.

He said people wearing masks was an important step to Melbourne loosening restrictions and reducing the number of people falling ill with the deadly virus.

"That sort of behaviour has to stop. I acknowledge that wearing a mask can be difficult," Dr Coatsworth said today.
"It may take a while to get used to but in all seriousness, it is just having a mask on."

The top doctor said masks are a "critically important" aspect of the government's public health approach.

There are 4 reasons that make Victorians exempt from wearing a mask in Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire.

Those include
going for a run,
having a medical issue that makes mask wearing difficult,
having a job that is not amenable to mask wearing
or if you are a child under 12 years old.

Anyone who does not comply will be hit with a $200 fine unless police are convinced you qualify for one of the exemptions.
<<
Incited by dangerous facebook Grp'
26july-covidiot-stunt-incited-by-fb-grp.png

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/melbourne-bunnings-customer-who-refused-to-wear-mask-slammed-by-medical-and-legal-experts
IMO the Federal Government needs to shut this Facebook Grp down . This is an example of a group spreading conspiracy theories and fake science and outright liars that are inciting foolish people to endulge in dangerous behaviours that spread the virus.>>


A member of the group, which has 2,500 members, then posted the clip to Twitter on Sunday morning, where it was viewed more than 200,000 times in just a few hours.
Associate Professor Beck said it was “perfectly acceptable” for a shop to ask its customers to wear a mask when they enter the premises if they had no medical exemption, and that managers have the right to ask them to leave if they refuse.

“Bunnings is not doing anything wrong at all,” he said.

“In fact, Bunnings potentially has a legal obligation to exclude people like her, not merely because she’s breaking the law herself, but by not wearing a mask she’s potentially putting other people in the shop - employees and other customers - at risk.

“There’s no good excuse for people like her to be doing that. She’s harming other people."

Associate Professor Beck said there had been a rise in people around the world using pseudo-legal terms to make arguments around human rights since the pandemic began, which he described as “nuttiness”.

“There’s no right to disobey the law and there’s no right to harm other people’s health," he said.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/woman-threatens-to-sue-bunnings-staff-after-being-asked-to-wear-mask/ar-BB17cjgO?ocid=msedgdhp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-victoria-s-premier-slams-mask-flouters/vi-BB17aVpy?ocid=msedgntp

Top doctor confident Victoria's COVID-19 wave set to turn a corner
Deputy Chief Health Officer Dr Nick Coatsworth remains confident Victoria's COVID-19 curve is set to flatten within days, despite persistently high rates of new infections.

The state has recorded an average of 365 new cases daily in the past seven days, despite more than two weeks of Stage Three restrictions across Melbourne and the Mitchell Shire.

Yesterday, the state recorded 357 new infections and five further deaths.

"The silver lining there of course is that those numbers appear to be fairly static between the 300 to 400 mark with the exception of course that big of 490," Dr Coatsworth told the Weekend Today show this morning.

"Whilst they are not coming down as quick as we would like, the explanation for that is that when the disease is embedded within the community, when there are more chains of transmission, it is going to take longer for those restrictions to take effect."

<< looking at my epidemiological semilog curve , I think there is some evidence that the slope of the curve has reduced over the last 10 days , this confirms to me he may be right but for different reasons ( I'm applying six sigma methods in my analysis rather than looking at a very noisy set of data >>

"Whilst we can say we can already see from the curve that it is a wider curve than in the first wave, it will turn the corner and it will start to come down in the coming days to weeks."

It comes as speculation mounts that the initial six-week lockdown will have to be extended in order to get community transmission under control.

The federal government yesterday announced it was stepping in to assist Victorian authorities in setting up a dedicated response centre to tackle coronavirus outbreaks amongst aged care homes in the state.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/top-doctor-confident-victoria-s-covid-19-wave-set-to-turn-a-corner/ar-BB17bMBA?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
26 July in NSW

Fears of a church ‘superspreader’
Sunday masses in Sydney's south west are looking different this morning amid fears a churchgoer is a coronavirus superspreader.
Churchgoers declared close contacts as NSW records 14 new COVID-19 cases
New South Wales has recorded 14 new cases of COVID-19, with numerous linked to a church outbreak.

26july-nsw-church-spreader-BB179-Sp4.jpg

Churches effected.

4 of the new cases attended funeral and church services in south west Sydney between 16 and 19 of July and have been urged to isolate and get tested, regardless of symptoms.
"Continue to self-isolate for 14 days even if the test is negative. If symptoms develop get tested again," NSW Health said.

The services attended were:

16 July - St Brendan's Catholic Church Bankstown for one hour from 6.30pm
17 July - Ausia Funeral Services at Fairfield East between 1pm and 8pm
18 July - Funeral service at St Brendan's Catholic Church Bankstown for one hour from 10am
18 July - Burial service at St John of God Lawn at Rookwood between 11.30 and 1pm
19 July - Our Lady of Mt Carmel at Mt Pritchard for one hour from 7.30am

There were 25,139 tests undertaken in New South Wales, down from yesterday where a record-breaking 30,535 were done.

6 new cases have been linked to the Thai Rock Restraunt cluster, number of which are associated with Our Lady of Lebanon Church.

3 are returned travellers and one case is still under investigation.

No new cases have been linked to the Crossroads Hotel cluster, or Batemans Bay Soliders Club.

Meanwhile, 3 schools have been closed after 4 students tested positive in western Sydney.

There were
2 students in Merrylands,
1 in Bossley Park and 1 in Bonnyrigg Heights.
2 of the 4 children are related.
26july-sydney-schools-effected-BB179-LER.jpg


It is understood some of those children may have gone to school while their mother was awaiting her own positive test result.
<< not good , they should have been kept home with her and her partner if she has one >>
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/churchgoers-declared-close-contacts-as-nsw-records-14-new-covid-19-cases/ar-BB17bPTD?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-fears-of-a-church-superspreader/vi-BB17bLyL?ocid=msedgntp

Staff member at ANOTHER Thai Rock restaurant (at Potts Point) tests positive to coronavirus, prompting warning
A Thai restaurant in Sydney's Potts Point has been closed for cleaning after a staff member tested positive to coronavirus, NSW Health says.

The department has issued a warning that anyone who attended the Thai Rock Restaurant at Potts Point between Wednesday, July 15 and Saturday, July 25 needs to be immediately tested.

It says they must also self-isolate for 14 days since they were last there.

The revelation follows an investigation into a person who went there on Friday, July 17.

Regardless of symptoms, anyone who went to the restaurant for less than two hours during the July dates has been urged to get tested and self-isolate.

The Potts Point restaurant has the same owners as Thai Rock Wetherill Park, but investigations have not yet identified links between cases at the two sites.

NSW Health has reported six new COVID-19 cases linked to the Thai Rock in Wetherill Park, bringing the total number of cases connected to the venue to 67.

The Thai Rock cases include 11 linked to the Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral in Harris Park, Western Sydney.

A worshipper who attended the church over three days after visiting the restaurant later tested positive.

The health authority issued an alert about Thai Rock on July 17, urging that anyone who dined at the restaurant over July 9-12 and July 14 should get tested.
A woman in her 30s from south-west Sydney worked at the restaurant over those dates before testing positive.

8 cases from the cluster have also been linked to 3 schools, which have been closed for cleaning.

The schools are Cerdon College in Merrylands, the Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School in Bossley Park and Freeman Catholic College in Bonnyrigg Heights.

14 new cases overall were confirmed in the 24 hours to 8:00pm yesterday, including 4 cases relating to church and funeral services between July 16 and 19 in south-west Sydney which were reported yesterday.

Pubs fined after spot checks
Police have fined several venues as part of a crackdown to make sure businesses and patrons are following the newly introduced tighter restrictions.

Police fined a venue on the Princes Highway in the Wollongong suburb Figtree $5,000 for not enforcing safety rules, after people were spotted drinking in groups yesterday.

A Thredbo venue was issued two $5,000 fines and a travel company owner $5,000 after police found a large group allegedly breaching capacity rules.

In Port Macquarie, 1 pub and 2 restaurants were each fined $1,000 for breaking the rules after a police check on 19 venues.

4 venues across Gerringong and Shellharbour also face fines for overcrowding and not enforcing physical distancing.

Elsewhere, 12 people have been fined $1,000 over a dance party held on Friday night at Lake Jindabyne. Up to 200 people attended the party, but most fled once police arrived.

A 60-year-old man from Charlestown, near Newcastle, has been fined $1,000 for failing to self-isolate for 14 days after returning from Victoria.
<< Great , that's only a few kilometers away >>

Another man, 63 y.o , was arrested and charged yesterday after entering NSW from Victoria without a permit.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/covid-19-cases-linked-to-thai-rock-cluster-in-sydney-s-west-rises-to-67/ar-BB17bUpC?ocid=msedgntp

Exclusive very high fee charging Sydney private schools qualifying for JOBKeeper
Some of the most expensive New South Wales private schools have accessed the JOBKeeper subsidy to keep staff on during COVID's uncertainty.

Prestigious boarding schools including King's School in Parramatta and St Joseph's College have qualified for the $1500 a fortnight wage protection.

<< Not many NSWelsmen will be impressed with that considering the wealth and world class assets these schools have at their ready disposal. >>
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/expensive-sydney-private-schools-qualifying-for-jobkeeper/ar-BB17bQzB?ocid=msedgntp


New South Wales Supreme Court rules in favour of NSW Police, banning planned Sydney's Black Lives Matter protest on Health Grounds.
26july-blm-organisers-miffed-BB17cepm.jpg

The spokesmen / organisers for the planned BLM rally in Sydney scheduled for Tuesday.

The New South Wales supreme court has ruled in favour of police, effectively banning a Black Lives Matter protest planned for Tuesday in Sydney – but activists say the rally will go ahead REGARDLESS..

The court on Sunday sided with police and dubbed the event a prohibited public assembly, opening up demonstrators to arrest and fines for breaching coronavirus restrictions on mass gatherings.

But seconds after Justice Mark LeRace announced his orders, a lawyer for the rally organiser Paddy Gibson asked they be temporarily suspended to allow for an appeal to be lodged with the court of appeal.

The court was told on Friday Gibson had threatened to take the matter all the way to the high court.

NSW Health’s Dr Jeremy McAnulty rated the risk of transmission at the rally as “medium” and told the court he was concerned about whether social distancing could be maintained.

Organisers have nevertheless promised to risk arrest and gather outside Town Hall at noon on Tuesday as planned. They will then walk to Parliament House to deliver a petition calling for justice for David Dungay Jr, an Indigenous man who died in a Sydney jail in 2015.

His nephew Paul Silva told Guardian Australia the rally would go ahead: “Our family is going to take to the streets to demand justice.

“The only way that’s going to stop this protest is if the Premier calls Safe Work New South Wales and calls the department of public prosecutions to undertake an investigation. Otherwise, we’ll continue to take to the streets, whether it be with 40 people, or 40,000 people.

“Our family is determined to get justice for David Dungay Jr. and demand systematic change for the First Nations people here in Australia.

“The Australian government, New South Wales courts and New South Wales police should be very grateful that we’re not looting and rioting, like what’s happening in the US.” Silva said the family were committed to peaceful protests: “We just know that violence isn’t going solve this".

Gibson’s lawyer had argued that yelling “Black Lives Matter” in a protest was more important to a democratic society than going to a football match, and thus should also be accommodated in times of pandemic.

“Going to the aquarium, going to sex-on-premises venues, going to football matches – these aren’t essential to our democracy,” Felicity Graham said. “Protest is.”

Gibson produced a Covid-19 safety plan like those businesses require to operate, in which he said people should wear masks, practice hand hygiene and leave contact details with organisers so they could be notified in the event a demonstrator tested positive to coronavirus.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/supreme-court-rules-in-favour-of-police-banning-sydney-s-black-lives-matter-protest/ar-BB17cbUV?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
26 July in QLD , apart from weather related and sports news , a slow day north of the border wrt covid19 , no news is good news.

Queensland reinforces coronavirus response
Health authorities say they don't expect there'll be community transmission in the Sunshine State, but pubs and clubs have been put on notice.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/queensland-reinforces-coronavirus-response/vi-BB17bRee?ocid=msedgntp

26 July in SA , also a slow day wrt covid19 .
Driver arrested after allegedly speeding through SA border checkpoint with blackened-out number plates
26july-sa-border-runner-BB17b-Elb.jpg

A South Australian man has been arrested after allegedly breaching COVID-19 directions by entering the state in a vehicle with blackened-out number plates and travelling on the wrong side of the road.

About 7:15pm on Friday, police at the Oodla Wirra border checkpoint, in the state's Mid North, spotted the blue Toyota sedan travelling at speed on the wrong side of the Barrier Highway.
Police said the driver did not stop at the checkpoint and officers later found the vehicle abandoned in bushes off a dirt road.
The alleged driver, a 30-year-old man from Elizabeth Downs, was arrested after he appeared from bushes nearby, police said.

Police said the man was a non-essential traveller who had returned to SA from New South Wales and was required to quarantine at Elizabeth Park accommodation.
He was charged with failing to comply with quarantine under the Emergency Management Act, driving at a dangerous speed, obscure number plate, driving unlicensed and breach of bail.
He was also submitted to a drug test where he provided a positive result for methamphetamine, police said.
He was refused police bail and will appear before the Port Pirie Magistrates Court on Monday.
The vehicle was impounded for 28 days.

The arrest came just hours after a 39-year-old Victorian man, who was earlier refused entry into the state, was found sleeping in his car at Renmark.
He was charged with failing to comply with COVID-19 directions and refused police bail.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/driver-arrested-after-allegedly-speeding-through-sa-border-checkpoint-with-blackened-out-number-plates/ar-BB17bElf?ocid=msedgntp

South Australians desperate to return home from Victoria
There was a expected mad dash across Victoria's western border this weekend, many South Australians were desperate to get home while they still can.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/south-australians-desperate-to-return-home-from-victoria/vi-BB17bVSB?ocid=msedgntp

26 July was also a quiet covid news day in WA.

WA Premier Mark McGowan unveils $2.7 billion stimulus to boost state's economy
The West Australian Government has unveiled $2.7 billion in new stimulus spending designed to boost the state's economy, with a focus on renewable energy and building maintenance among other areas.

A total of 21 sectors have been pegged for stimulus, including health and social infrastructure, tourism and manufacturing.

The program brings the total value of the State Government's stimulus to $5.5 billion since the coronavirus pandemic began.

Premier Mark McGowan said the combined stimulus package, dubbed the 'WA Recovery Plan', represented a "massive" pipeline of work.
"Much of the initiatives contained within this document are about inspiring and incentivising the private sector to create jobs, to build and invest," Mr McGowan told reporters.

A $60 million "shovel-ready" building maintenance program will be targeted at State Government facilities, including police and fire stations, as well as improved disability access at train stations.

Another $66.3 million will be spent on renewable energy technologies.

The Premier said the pipeline of works would roll out over the "coming months and years".
"We're rushing as fast as we can to get as many projects out the door, as much activity underway ... as possible," Mr McGowan said.
"Our priority now is getting people back to work, keeping businesses sustainable, making sure that our economy recovers.
"It's not on paying off debt, it's not on delivering surpluses."

Treasury suggests 'thousands' of jobs will be created
Mr McGowan said the recovery plan was expected to deliver "many thousands" of jobs, according to Treasury estimates.

About 60,000 positions are expected to be 'freed up' once the reopening of the economy is complete.

Mr McGowan said the estimates were calculated with the assumption that WA's interstate border would remain closed.

The Government would communicate with businesses "over the next month to six weeks" to ensure each industry knew what stimulus was available, Mr McGowan added.

State Recovery Controller Sharyn O'Neill, who was appointed to the role in May, said she had spent considerable time in discussions with the community to assemble the plan.
"More than 800 people came to ministerial roundtables," Ms O'Neill said.
"The whole plan is about jobs, about confidence, about getting people back to work or keeping them in work and building a pipeline for the future."

Previously announced elements of the government's stimulus plan include grants for new housing and small business tax cuts.

Renewable energy spend for regions
A total of $44.5 million will be spent on renewable energy infrastructure in WA's North West, including 50 standalone power systems.

Nine regional communities will have battery storage systems installed, with some remote Aboriginal communities to receive infrastructure upgrades.

Treasurer Ben Wyatt said the stimulus package was designed with the private sector front of mind.
"One of the things that I've been painfully aware of … is that ultimately the Government — as a contributor to the economy — is 10 to 15 % ," Mr Wyatt said.
"It's the private sector that we need to get up and running again, investing and employing people, and that's what the recovery plan … is designed to do."

Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA chief economist Aaron Morey said while the extra investment was welcome, businesses would reserve their judgement on the plan until more detail became available.
"The business community needs the detail of that spending as soon as possible so they can start to plan and invest around those announcements," Mr Morey said.
"Clearly the most important thing for this state is to create a more competitive business environment.
"Western Australia relies on foreign capital investment and the best way, the most direct way, to drive that is by lowering the tax burden on business in this state."

Meanwhile, WA recorded 2 new COVID-19 cases overnight, both of whom are returned Australian travellers and remain in hotel quarantine.

It brings WA's total case number to 658 after 2 historical cases were recorded on Saturday.

Mr McGowan said both new cases were identified through routine testing, with one of the travellers having returned from the United Kingdom.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/wa-premier-mark-mcgowan-unveils-2-7-billion-stimulus-to-boost-state-s-economy/ar-BB17c4d4?ocid=msedgntp

WA not-for-profits expect boom in people facing hardship
Not-for-profits across Western Australia are expecting a boom in people facing hardship as the COVID-19 pandemic draws on and financial support falls away.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/wa-not-for-profits-expect-boom-in-people-facing-hardship/vi-BB17bYr3?ocid=msedgntp

26 July , A slow covid news day in Tasmania

Tasmanian businesses not counting on limited travel bubble to keep them afloat
26july-tas-BB17b-U8-V.jpg

Some Tasmanian businesses aren't expecting a boom time when borders reopen for residents of some Australian states next month, with excluded Queensland dismissing the idea "anyone" would want to go anyway.

A day after Tasmania announced it would be easing its border restrictions, Queensland's Deputy Premier, Steven Miles, responded to his state's exclusion by expressing disbelief about the lure of what's on offer.

"I don't see any reason why anyone would want to go to Tassie," Mr Miles said on Saturday.

"I don't think anybody would be going to Tassie to go to the beach, so there's plenty of opportunities to travel here in Queensland."

Travellers from South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia can decide for themselves whether Tasmania's beaches will be on their itinerary when the state's borders open on August 7.

But despite the state reopening to some tourists, local businesses aren't banking on the bubble making a difference to their bottom line, even if people come in significant numbers.

Eastern state visitors needed
Shannon Wells from Par Avion said he didn't expect to see much of an impact on his business.

"We don't really get a huge amount, and Tasmania overall doesn't get a huge amount of tourism from those states," he said.

"Our traditional markets really are Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, but we do get some traffic from Adelaide.

"Hopefully the airlines increase the frequency of flights, and we get a bit of a two-way street.

"But we're really talking at the peak looking at 35 flights a day coming into Hobart, so we've got quite some way to go."

It's not just Mr Wells's business that relies heavily on those visiting from the eastern states.

In the 12 months to March this year, figures from Tourism Tasmania showed around 89 per cent of the state's 1.12 million interstate visitors came from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT.

That means South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory make up the remaining 11 per cent.

But with Western Australia's border controls in place, that figure drops to just under 5.5 per cent.

Still, the opportunity for South Australians to visit Tasmania has been well received by the South Australian Government.
"We will welcome the opportunity to get over to Tasmania, we work very well with the Government there," said South Australian Environment Minister David Speirs.

"We share lots of nature-based tourism activities, and I'm planning to travel there myself later in the year to look at some of the things they're doing, so it's good news for South Australians."

More than 8,000 people from the Northern Territory visited Tasmania in the 12 months to March this year.

But even with the travel bubble on the horizon, the prospect of travelling south had mixed appeal for Territorians enjoying the current ideal dry-season weather at a market in Darwin.

"I think it's a bit safer to stay in our little area just while everything's spreading" said Sarah, one Darwin market-goer.

"It will be my first time [visiting Tasmania] but my partner wants to go, so we'd definitely be on the plane as soon as we can," said Samuel.

But Brendan said Tasmania's weather would count him out.

"It's too cold, we moved to the NT to get away from that weather," he said.

Concerns some will miss out on benefits entirely
Kerrie Thompson's cafe is located inside a gift shop in Latrobe, but with no tourists permitted to travel on the Spirit of Tasmania, she has her reservations that her business will reap the benefits of the bubble.

"I just wish there would have been something that's coming into Devonport [in the north-west] as well," she said.

"Everyone's going to be flying into maybe Hobart or Launceston. Up here in the north, I doubt whether people are going to drive up here."

#dayssinceEMBEDfull

Since the pandemic began, she's seen a 40 per cent decline in her business.

"We're struggling now, I think most businesses are struggling, and we're hoping to attract more local traffic through here," she said.

"But without the tourism coming up here and helping us, I can't see much improvement."

She's seen more people who live in the area come into the cafe recently, but wants to see more Tasmanians support local businesses.

"If everyone shopped local, if everyone used their local people and supported their local business, we'll all get through this."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/tasmanian-businesses-not-counting-on-limited-travel-bubble-to-keep-them-afloat/ar-BB17bU8W?ocid=msedgntp

26 July also slow covid news day in NT

Indigenous economies have been hit by coronavirus, but online art sales offer a ray of hope
Quarantining remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities has protected many vulnerable First Nations people from Covid-19. But it has been to the necessary detriment of local economies.

This is especially so when primary income sources are the national and international markets for Indigenous art. The floor has dropped out of sales to tourists visiting remote communities while important Indigenous art shows, such as Fremantle’s Revealed, have cancelled.

There are signs, however, some have invested significantly in Indigenous art via the internet during Covid-19 lockdowns.

Online sales and promotional space for Australian visual artists, Bluethumb, says its Indigenous art sales increased by 110% in the June quarter while Australians were in isolation. Bluethumb’s Indigenous representation has grown steadily in recent years; it now partners with 30 Indigenous art centres (up from eight in 2017).
When remote First Nations communities went into lockdown, most community art centres that partner with Bluethumb closed due to the absence of tourists and an incapacity to move the art listed on the website.

Bluethumb’s Freddy Grant says: “To help counter this, we offered art centres the opportunity to send consignments of artworks to our houses as we were and still are working from home.”

Grant and co-founders, Ed and George Hartley, have sold and posted pieces to buyers most days.

He says: “People are no longer buying things like fast fashion and instead are buying locally and buying investment pieces to improve their homes. It’s no surprise in these conditions interest in Indigenous art has skyrocketed. We’ve also dedicated a large portion of our marketing efforts to help our art centres sell as much as possible.”

Half of Bluethumb’s Indigenous art sales in the last quarter happened in June amid “growing support for the Black Lives Matter movement”, Grant says.

“I think the numbers speak for themselves. Australians are now more interested in Indigenous rights, history and culture than ever and are supporting Indigenous creatives because of this.”

Bluethumb’s online sales of the work of Indigenous artist Karen Lee (who is not aligned with an art centre) rose 400% in June compared with May.

“A good percentage of my increase in sales is due to the raised awareness of the importance of culture and ... an increased interest in the storytelling of Indigenous art. The recent promotions of Bluethumb have given me great exposure and I am noticing that collectors are showing more interest in the meaning of the art, its symbolism and stories.”

Artists and art centres in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are often the mainstay of local economies. A single artist may support large extended families of 20 or 30 people.

Ironically, perhaps, artists who may not themselves use or have regular access to the internet may be producing work that is only sold online right now.

In a recent interview in his Walpiri language, Patrick “Jupiter” Smith of Warlayirti Artists (a centre whose online sales have been strong in lockdown) said: “I can’t say I know much about the internet ... How might this work then? Well our art centre will post our artworks to the internet. [Our artworks] might end up all the way to the east, perhaps as far as America, to some big city.”

Buku-Larrnggay Mulka art centre at Yirrkala, in north-east Arnhem Land, sold about $5m of art last financial year, including the last Covid-impacted quarter. Sales fell dramatically from March to June, however, and the centre coordinator, Will Stubbs, expects the next full year to be bad.

But, he says, an otherwise bad sales quarter was somewhat redeemed when his colleague Dean Wickens launched Buku onto the internet.

“I have been ignoring the assertion that you can sell fine art online since it was first proffered in 1999. Turns out I was wrong. Eventually,” Stubbs says.

“We have seen our Instagram followers rise by 3,000 in that three months and our [internet] sales are around $25K per month now. Before we put that effort into making our website useful, sales were low to zero ... Where we are missing is the flood of adventurous motivated people who find their way to this remote cultural centre every dry season. Generally, these people often mark their once-in-a-lifetime visits with a special piece bought on country. That is the deficit in our sales and we assume it can’t be completely replaced by online purchasers.”

Stephanie Pakin, the Indigenous engagement manager of Indigenous Art Code (which promotes transparency and integrity in First Nations art sales, says Covid-19 has heavily impacted a range of selling points – including art fairs, exhibitions, galleries and centres – for Aboriginal and Torres Strait art.

“During this time of change, we have noticed some of these parties being able to move into virtual experiences and online spaces to promote and sell Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artworks and products. While the increase in some online sales is good, the overall impact on income for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists is likely to be affected during this time of closure and postponement of the usual selling and engagement opportunities,” she says.

“Ongoing movements like Black Lives Matter can sometimes cause a reflection of or highlight the relationships that nations may or may not have with Indigenous people. One way that members of the public may feel as though they can connect or respond to such movements is to engage with and support the livelihoods of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists through the purchase of artworks and products.”

Her organisation’s work is ever more important with increasing transactions between Indigenous creators and those who sell their work, as, she says, it strives to “promote ethical and transparent arrangements, including respect for Indigenous cultural and intellectual property”.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/indigenous-economies-have-been-hit-by-coronavirus-but-online-art-sales-offer-a-ray-of-hope/ar-BB17bCgp?ocid=msedgntp

26 July - Antarctic Stations

Antarctic expeditioners facing delays in returning home
Some of Australia's Antarctic expeditioners are facing at least a 4 month delay to get home, as precautions against COVID-19 stop ships and ice landing capable airplanes from reaching the Davis and Mawson stations.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/antarctic-expeditioners-facing-delays-in-returning-home/vi-BB17bMtQ?ocid=msedgntp
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
27-Jul

A horrible day in more ways than one in NSW and Victoria .

New cases o/night in Victoria = 532
Shocked everyone !!
New cases o/night in NSW = 17
Total new cases o/night in NSW & Vic = 549
Total new cases in NSW & Vic since 10 June = 7892

27july.png


Australia's pandemic daily cases so far
27july-australia.png


Australian situation today
27july-australian-situation-today.png



Clusters in the 2nd Wave in NSW & Victoria ( over 10 cases )
27july-recent-clusters-shown-as-blobs.png

Data inside the blobs ( don't know why hospitals have disappeared overnight )
27july-bubbles-data.png


Hospital situation
27july-hospitals.png


Daily deaths
27july-deaths.png


Deaths by demographics
27july-deaths-by-demographics.png


Deaths by clutter
27july-death-by-cluster.png


Australia confirmed cases demographics
27july-confirmed-cases-by-demographics.png


Australian testing overall positivity as off today
27july-testing-positivity-vic-now-0.png

This is all tests and all positives found per state , is cumulative and quite insensitive to short periods of change in the actual positivity , which is show more accurately by the accepted standard 7 day moving average positivity figures.

None-the-less Victoria's overall positivity is moving upward 0.5% ( last week ) to 0.6% , which is a very bad sign , indicates the undetected cases of covid19 in the community in Victoria is increasing , this is contrary to the indications shown in the epidemiological semilog curve for daily cases detected.

Detailed 7day avg positivity vs tests
Australia = 451/64666 = 0.7%
27july-7-day-avg-positives-vs-tests-AUS.png


NSW = 14/24697 = 0.06%
27july-7-day-avg-positives-vs-tests-NSW.png


Victoria = 415/26619 = 1.56%
27july-7-day-avg-positives-vs-tests-vic.png

While WHO recommends keeping this figure under 5% , Victoria at 1.56% positivity is worrying as it indicates sentinel testing is NOT sufficient to control the local pandemic wave's growth in Victoria and a large cohort of symptomatic people are not electing to be tested in Victoria .
 

kingofnobbys

BD.org Sicko
Original Poster
27 JULY IN VICTORIA

Victorian coronavirus cases continue to soar with record 532 new infections, six deaths
Victoria has recorded 532 new coronavirus cases, the highest one-day total in the state AND IN AUSTRALIA since the pandemic began.

6 people have died with COVID-19, including a woman aged in her 90s, a woman and a man in their 80s, a woman and a man in their 70s and a man in his 50s.

Premier Daniel Andrews said 5 of the 6 deaths were connected to outbreaks in aged today and this number is expected to grow exponentially in the coming days and weeks.
Victoria now has 4,542 active cases, with 683 of those connected to aged care and 400 cases in health workers.

There are 245 people in Victorian hospitals with the virus, including 44 in intensive care units.

Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said the outbreaks in aged care were "a consequence of community transmission".
"They represent a tragedy for the families involved," he said.
"The numbers are disturbing."

Professor Sutton said there were now:

84 cases linked to St Basil's Home for The Aged in Fawkner
82 cases linked to in Estia aged care in Ardeer
77 cases linked to Epping Gardens Aged Care in Epping — a tripling in confirmed infections since yesterday
62 cases linked to Menarock Life aged care in Essendon
53 cases linked to Glendale Aged Care in Werribee
57 cases linked to Kirkbrae Presbyterian homes in Kilsyth
50 cases linked to Estia aged care in Heidelberg
The infections are split between staff and residents at the facilities.

Professor Sutton said residents were "at significant risk of dying".
"Where there are outbreaks in aged care, the mortality is extremely high," he said.
"Deaths in aged care made up almost half of deaths in the UK, so these are critical areas."

More industries may need to close if numbers keep rising, Premier says
Mr Andrews said there were "far too many people" going to work while sick.
"You simply can't go to work if you have symptoms. You can't go to work if you feel sick, even mildly," he said.
"This is the biggest driver, it's not the only issue, but it is the biggest driver of transmission."

Victoria death toll spirals on darkest day for new cases
Cases linked to key outbreaks:

• 95 cases have been linked to Somerville Retail Services in Tottenham

• 71 cases have been linked to JBS in Brooklyn

• 69 cases have been linked to Bertocchi Smallgoods in Thomastown

• 47 cases have been linked to Australian Lamb Company in Colac

• 13 cases have been linked to the Linfox Warehouse in Truganina

• 8 cases have been linked to Diamond Valley Pork in Laverton North

• 6 cases have been linked to Don KR Castlemaine

• 26 cases have been linked to LaManna Supermarket in Essendon Fields

• 22 cases have been linked to Brunswick Private Hospital

• 6 cases have been linked to Parkville Youth Justice

• 12 cases have been linked to Respite Services Australia in Moonee Ponds

4 cases have been linked to the NICU at the Royal Children's Hospital. The cases are 2 parents, 1 patient and a healthcare worker.

Today's 532 new infections tops out the previous worst day for Victoria, which hit 484 six days ago. Twenty-one people have died in Victoria in three days.

According to Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton's modelling, today's COVID-19 figures should be Victoria's peak. However, he has not ruled out worse days to come in future.
"Modelling with our effective reproductive number that I have seen most recently suggests that today should be the peak," he said.
"Now I'm not going to sit back and say today is the peak. We have to see what happens in coming days."

He warned it could take longer to bring the second wave under control, but Victoria would "get to the other side" eventually.
"I'm more concerned that we'll probably see a rise in numbers because the outbreaks are really volatile in aged care settings," he said.
"The numbers can increase very significantly in a very short period of time even as community transmission might be coming down."

Training and virus testing of staff in aged care homes has been ramped up following the escalating number of cases.

Critically ill aged patients were being moved out of aged care facilities into hospitals, Mr Andrews said, when "deemed clinically appropriate for their safety, for their care".
"That won't mean every single patient gets taken to a public hospital," he said.
"It's not a function whether there's capacity or not, it's a function of the individual decisions that treating doctors make both about the infection, prevention and control risks in a given aged care setting and also the clinical circumstances of that patient."

Almost 150 additional WorkSafe on-site inspections have been conducted across a range of different high-risk settings over the past week.
"WorkSafe inspectors have found employers to be doing the right thing, employees to be doing the right thing," Mr Andrews said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victoria-death-toll-spirals-on-darkest-day-for-new-cases/ar-BB17dj1Y?ocid=msedgntp

Mr Andrews said unless people changed their behaviour, the state would continue to see new case numbers at "unacceptably high levels" and the Government may need to close entire industries.
"So employers … business owners have a really big stake in this," he said.
"We have to work together to keep anyone who's got symptoms away from work. Otherwise, businesses will have to close."

Mr Andrews acknowledged it was not good enough that people without sick leave were waiting weeks to receive the $1,500 hardship payment from the State Government, which is available for those who cannot go to work because they have to self-isolate or care for a child in isolation.
"I have asked that to be streamlined," he said.

Intensive care units to face 'increasing challenges'
Professor Sutton said "some stability" had been seen in postcodes previously labelled as hotspots, including North Melbourne and Flemington.

He said much of that related to the "intensive management" of cases in public housing towers across the area.
"And [it] speaks to the fact that if you can support people to get tested, support them in their isolation and quarantine, then you can drive down numbers across entire postcodes," he said.

But other local government areas, including Brimbank in Melbourne's west and Greater Dandenong in the south-east, had both seen an increase in recorded infections.
"We're looking into what might be driving that … sometimes it's related to those aged care or other work settings where outbreaks occur," he said.

Professor Sutton said hospitals were yet to feel the full brunt of the state's recent uptick in cases.
"There's a lag. I think we'll see an increase in ICU cases in the next couple of weeks that will be more reflective of our total active cases," he said.
"So there will be challenges for hospital admissions and there will be increasing challenges for those who require ICU."

Professor Sutton said Australian Defence Force members had carried out door-knocking of people who should be self-isolating and found a number of people were not at home.
"Sometimes that means they might have isolated elsewhere, but we need to check that they're being compliant," he said.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/victorian-coronavirus-cases-continue-to-soar-with-record-532-new-infections-six-deaths/ar-BB17diNh?ocid=msedgntp

Age care developments
Around 560 active COVID-19 cases in Victoria linked to aged care
Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck says it reflects the broader spread of the virus, while the AMA's Dr Tony Bartone says the sector needs urgent support.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/around-560-active-covid-19-cases-in-victoria-linked-to-aged-care/vi-BB17dygC?ocid=msedgntp

St Basil's empties as Epping home pleads for residents to be moved
27july-epping-and-st-basils-locations.png

The operator of a nursing home in Melbourne's north where a coronavirus outbreak has grown rapidly has pleaded with authorities to evacuate residents to hospital, while most of the residents at another home have been moved to private hospitals, sometimes without their next of kin being told.
Several people have died at the St Basil's Homes for the Aged in Fawkner and despite a government takeover last week, families of residents have complained that they have gone for days without word from the facility, only to find their relatives had been admitted to hospital.

At the nearby Epping Gardens aged care home 83 people - 61 residents and 22 staff - have now tested positive in an outbreak that has grown from two cases less than a week ago and 24 cases on Sunday.

Greg Reeve chief executive of Heritage Care, which runs the home, says he has been demanding that health authorities and the federal and state governments move residents into hospitals so they can receive proper care and stem the spread of COVID-19.
"Safety must be the number one priority and we can't provide that," Mr Reeve said
"We have informed [health authorities] of that day after day."
"We don't want people dying. We are trying to save lives.
"This is a state crisis , It is absolutely awful and we need help."

Mr Reeve said there was a severe shortage of adequately trained workers due to the number of staff who were either infected or close contacts of people who were infected.

He said there was "minimal" catering staff, but assured families that residents were being fed and hydrated.

Mr Reeve said the Health Department was not evacuating residents unless they were acutely ill. He said the home called an ambulance to transport an acutely ill patient at 4am on Monday but it did not arrive.

On Monday morning Premier Daniel Andrews said patients were being moved out of private aged care facilities "when it is deemed clinically appropriate for their safety for their care".
"That won't mean every single patient gets taken to a public hospital," he said
"It's not a function of whether there's capacity or not, it's a function of the individual decisions that treating doctors make."

Many of the residents at St Basil's have already been moved to hospital

On Sunday, doctors at Knox Private Hospital received an email telling them the Healthscope hospital had agreed to take in 15 residents from St Basil's, with and without coronavirus, at the request of the Victorian Health Department.

The email said other private hospitals had also accepted residents.

"There are both COVID-positive and COVID-negative residents among the 15 being transferred to us," wrote the hospital's general manager Vincent Borg.

"Australia, and Victoria in particular, is facing never-before-seen health challenges as a result of the COVID-19 virus. I hope you appreciate the need for Healthscope to do what it can to help care for those most at need in our community."

A doctor who did not wish to be named said they understood all remaining residents were moved out of St Basil's into private hospitals at the weekend.

However, the family of Vicky Patsakos, 85, who has dementia, say the last information they received was that the grandmother was still at the home.
Son Thomas Patsakos said the family had not received an update since Friday and their repeated calls had gone unanswered.
"I'm calling every hour now in the hope that someone will answer," he said.

The Victorian Health Department has been contacted for comment.

There have been 78 coronavirus cases connected to St Basil's to date. The facility has an operating capacity of 120 residents and a requirement for more than 110 staff.

On Monday morning, Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck acknowledged and apologised for situations where families have spent days trying to ascertain whether their loved ones were still alive. He said a call centre had been set up to provide daily updates to families.
"We know that people are worried, we want to make sure that they get good information with respect to their loved ones, but it's a very, very complex situation inside."

In one case, Melbourne man Nicholas Barboussas was called and told by management brought in by the government that his father Paul was comfortably sitting in his room, when in fact he was gravely unwell at the Northern Hospital.
The 79-year died the next day from suspected COVID-19.

Mr Colbeck said the aged care sector, which the federal government is responsible for, had done "exceptionally well" in handling the spread of COVID-19 in Victoria that has now breached 71 facilities.

He also disputed reports of a shortage of masks and gloves in homes and said facilities were required to have infection control plans in place to deal with an outbreak.

The Health Workers Union has previously claimed workers were not properly trained in infection control and lacked adequate PPE.

Mr Colbeck said the federal government was working with Victorian authorities to deploy surge staff and fund homes to ensure they could afford to use only one set of workers, ensuring employees did not work at multiple homes and potentially exacerbate the spread.
"Three weeks ago we had four facilities where we had residents who had recovered from the virus and we were basically waiting for their isolation period to clear before we declared them COVID-free," he said.
"This circumstance has occurred in three weeks. It's purely because of community spread and the fact that the virus infects before symptoms arrive, and people are going to work in all sectors, not just age care, when infectious and the virus has spread."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/melbourne/sick-or-not-st-basil-s-residents-are-moved-out-of-nursing-home/ar-BB17dsJO?ocid=msedgntp


What's being done nationally to prevent coronavirus outbreaks in aged care homes?
First it was Newmarch house in New South Wales, and now outbreaks in Victoria's aged care sector are a deadly reminder of the risk the virus poses to elderly Australians, particularly in residential facilities.

Of the roughly 4,500 active cases in the Victoria , 683 are linked to aged care facilities.

Health officials have made it clear high rates of community transmission mean the virus will find its way into these facilities, but significant work has and is still being done to shield residents as much as possible.
"The residents in these facilities will be people's parents, grandparents, great grandparents — and they are at a significant risk of dying," Victorian Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said.
"That's an inescapable fact in these settings."

Here are some of the measures being taken to limit the spread of COVID-19 in aged care homes.

Mandatory masks and visitor limits
According to Prime Minister Scott Morrison, when community transmission is occurring, it is "inevitable" that coronavirus will make its way into aged care homes.

But changes have been made to limit the spread of the virus.

Around the country, a national code has been adopted by aged care providers, governing visitation in aged care homes.

It adheres to the latest Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) advice, which says aged care residents should not host more than two visitors at any one time, with visitors not mingling in communal areas.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said health authorities were continuing to learn from outbreaks as they happened.
"We have seen the provision of personal protective equipment, masks, and requirements for aged care workers that they are wearing masks in areas of transmission, whenever they are working with residents, or when providing care to people in their own homes," he said.
"We have seen the continued working together of different parts of the healthcare sectors, so the aged care facilities working with the Commonwealth, with the Commissioner for safety and equality in aged care, and with the State Government in making sure that we are responding."

Ultimately, Aged Care Minister Richard Colbeck said aged care homes could not be protected unless COVID-19 was contained.

"The way that we will stop COVID-19 in residential aged care facilities is the same way we will stop it everywhere else in the community, which is by stamping out community spread," he said.

As concerns of outbreaks in Victoria's aged care system grow, the state and federal governments have jointly set up a Victorian Aged Care Response Centre, which will operate from Monday.

The decision centralises federal and state government resources to support the sector as cases in Victorian centres grow.

Restricting staff movements
The federal and Victorian governments are currently working with the aged care sector on an arrangement where staff will only work at a single facility, and the governments will pay the wages and entitlements they would otherwise have earned elsewhere.

One of the key issues in the state is that, like in other states and territories, aged care staff usually work at more than one facility, meaning the virus can potentially spread further, faster.

Tim Hicks from Leading Age Services Australia, one of the peak bodies for the industry, said more work would be done once the full details of the funding support was worked out, but the idea of getting all staff working at single sites was unrealistic.
"We've done a bunch to minimise [people working across sites] since the beginning of the pandemic and even more in the last week," he said.
"A lot of risks can't be fully eliminated with COVID-19, we're trying to minimise them as much as we can."

Mr Hicks said while providers were on board with the agreement, many people's livelihoods depended on working across sites, and many businesses would be short staffed as a result of the single site move.
"Talking to our members, something like 20 % to 30 % of their work force currently work at multiple sites," he said.
"In the short term we're going to have all kind of [staffing] gaps."


Federal Minister for Aged Care Richard Colbeck said last week more than 400 workers from the Government's "surge workforce" had been deployed to aged care facilities in Victoria to help cover for staff who had to isolate and to support workers to stay at a single site.

But Deputy Chief Medical Officer Michael Kidd said that would not leave other states in short supply of workers.
"Certainly we have surge capacity available right across the country," he said.
'No shortage' of PPE, Government says
A survey released on Monday by the United Workers Union suggested that one in three home care workers did not believe they had adequate supplies of personal protective equipment like hand sanitiser and gloves on site.

The survey was conducted in May and June, before widespread outbreaks took hold in Victoria.

Senator Colbeck said the situation had improved significantly since the survey was taken.
"I reject any assertion that there's not availability of PPE because I see the numbers, I know what's available and I know what we're putting into the system," he said.
"Going back earlier in the pandemic, there was a global shortage of PPE, and we were making sure that those who needed it had it.
"Now, there is no shortage of PPE, it is being provided into the sector, in fact just the week before last we put 5 million masks into Victoria."

Of those 5 million, 4 million were sent towards aged care and home care providers.

Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton said he was "not aware of any aged care facility that is short of PPE".

Calls for people to be moved out early
Mr Morrison said on Monday one of the other federal initiatives being put to use was the deal struck between the private hospitals to help care for elderly COVID-19 patients.
"One of the key things being done in the aged care sector currently is transferring people who have contracted COVID into hospital facilities," he said.
"We are making use of the private hospital agreement that we put in place some months ago to free up beds."

<< IMO : it'll be safer when aged residents are not in need of intensive management that they should be moved to one of their children's homes where there is much less risk of contracting covid19 from a slack aged care worker or from the air-conditioning system or from the catering or meals or from another resident .
Their family will be much more careful and protective of their elderly loved one even if someone has to give up work to be a fulltime carer while it remains unsafe to have them reside in a aged care facility.
Returning most of these residents to their own homes is usually not possible because of the way the contracts to move into the facilities force the residents to sell their homes , to capitalize on their overall wealth and accumulated assets << ie maximise the fees the resident will have to pay to '"buy in" >>
I also think the more frail residents need to be in hospital in a high dependency ward under strict quarantine and tight infection control protocols and under continuous monitoring.

Nursing homes are even more dangerous wrt pandemics than cruise ships are , simply due to how they are (mis)managed , and the comorbidities of the residents and the close confines and communal way things are set up .>>


Currently, the national health advice for residential care facilities is that COVID-19 patients should only be transferred to hospital "if their condition warrants".
It also advises that "in some circumstances" it may be feasible to transfer residents who are not symptomatic to other settings, like family care.

But the Chief Executive of Aged and Community Services Australia, Patricia Sparrow, said the current approach should be changed so that all aged care cases were transferred to hospital.
<< This has more to do with maintaining the occupancy of these aged care homes and hence keeping their cash cows ( residents ) under their control , the risk for the industry is the resident may decide never to return or the family may decide to keep their loved one living with them and again not return them .
Family settings would IMO be far superior , under the management of the family GP and using inhome care if needed and even if a nurse has to be employed to live in-house with the family to care for the aged resident's medical needs if the family are not capable , ie things like wound dressings , canulars , catheters , injections , physio etc >>

"The state government here has a policy where they are assessing the need to go to hospital on a case-by-case basis," she said.
"Our position, and what our providers … are saying is that we believe that older people who contract coronavirus should be transferred to hospital, particularly those first cases.
"We have many other residents that we're responsible for and we think that will help us to minimise the spread within a facility."

‘Significant risk of dying’: Australian aged care workers accuse minister of playing down safety concerns
Aged care workers have scolded the federal minister for aged care, Richard Colbeck, after he said the sector was responding “exceptionally well” to Covid-19 outbreaks, accusing him of downplaying their safety concerns as hundreds of the residents they care for face a “significant risk of dying”.

The alarm was sounded by the United Workers Union after surveying more than 1,000 aged care workers. It found that two-thirds of workers do not feel prepared for a coronavirus outbreak at their facility, while almost 30% of workers reported having no training in how to use personal protective equipment. More than 90% said they could not afford to take unpaid leave.

The industry’s frustration came as Victoria recorded a further 147 new Covid-19 cases among aged care workers and residents on Monday, and five of six deaths among residents of different facilities. Seven of the 10 deaths recorded on Sunday were also aged care residents.

The soaring number of infections across aged care facilities has prompted a government crackdown to stop staff working at more than one facility, meaning if operators sign up to a voluntary code, the commonwealth will pay the cost of a secondary part-time job or shift a worker agrees to forgo.

On Monday, a newly established aged care response centre, jointly run by the federal and Victorian governments, began work to coordinate staff movements across the state, bolster rapid response capability, and improve communications to the families of residents at facilities experiencing an outbreak.

Victoria’s chief health officer Brett Sutton said it was hard to announce the total number of cases linked to aged care facilities in Victoria had risen to 683 on Monday, acknowledging it meant parents and grandparents were at “significant risk of dying”.
“That’s an inescapable fact in these settings. Where there are outbreaks in aged care, the mortality is extremely high.”

Premier Daniel Andrews said the rising virus numbers across the broader community were the result of people with Covid-19 symptoms not self-isolating. He explicitly linked this group’s complacency with further deaths in aged care, declaring “we will see more people die, particularly in aged care” if behaviours don’t change.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/significant-risk-of-dying-australian-aged-care-workers-accuse-minister-of-playing-down-safety-concerns/ar-BB17eAq0?ocid=msedgntp
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/what-s-being-done-nationally-to-prevent-coronavirus-outbreaks-in-aged-care-homes/ar-BB17el43?ocid=msedgntp

In Hospitals

Baby in hospital ICU with COVID-19
<< My soft hearted wife burst into tears when she heard this on the 7pm news and saw the images of the poor little mite in an intensive care humidicript with wires and tubes going in all directions , and heard the concerns of the mum and dad >>
A baby at the Royal Children's Hospital aged under three weeks old has tested positive to coronavirus as four cases have emerged in a cluster at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
27july-covid-baby-BB17e9-YH.jpg

The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) confirmed today two parents, one patient and a healthcare worker had been diagnosed with COVID-19 in the NICU at the hospital.
"All babies, staff and parents, including any RCH staff who have spent more than two hours on Butterfly Ward since 12 July will be tested," the DHHS statement read.

More than 200 children under four have contracted COVID-19 in Victoria.

Paediatrician and Chief of Medicine at the Royal Children's Hospital, Associate Professor Tom Connell told 3AW's Neil Mitchell children were not immune to the deadly virus.

COVID-19 symptoms among babies to look out for included fever, sneezing, fast breathing and changes in mood or behaviour.
"Children are susceptible to COVID-19," he said.
"It's not just an adult disease. The most important thing is to be alert, use your instincts when your child is not quite right."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/melbourne-baby-in-hospital-icu-with-covid-19/ar-BB17dGBy?ocid=msedgntp#image=1

Nurses and other healthcare workers open up about 'terror' of catching coronavirus
Key points:
More than 700 healthcare workers have tested positive for COVID-19 in Victoria
Many healthcare workers feel a sense of shame when they contract COVID-19
Healthcare workers are pleading with the public to listen to health warnings

A week and a half ago 32-year-old Emily Morris noticed some unusual aching in her lower legs.
As an emergency department nurse at The Royal Melbourne Hospital, she was used to being on her feet all day, but this was different.

She immediately spoke to her manager.
"I was taken off the floor, tested and then self-isolated until I got my result, which was around 24 hours later, which said that I was COVID positive," Ms Morris told 7.30.
"I was absolutely devastated.
"I think that, as a health care worker, there is a little bit of shame and stigma around being diagnosed as COVID positive."

Her close contacts were identified and isolated, and Ms Morris is now isolating in a government apartment while monitoring her symptoms, so she doesn't put her housemates at risk.
"I feel terrible. I haven't felt like eating and have difficulty keeping down fluids," she said.
"I have definitely been knocked around in a way that I didn't necessarily think that I would, especially being such a young and healthy person."

Look after us so we can look after you
Ms Morris is among at least 719 healthcare workers in Victoria who have tested positive for COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.

She has worked directly with COVID-positive patients, but suspects she contracted the virus in the community.
"Considering the high quality of the PPE that we have and the procedures that we have in place [at The Royal Melbourne], I am very certain that this was a community-acquired transmission," she said.

Ms Morris is now pleading with others in the community to wash their hands, socially distance and not leave their home unless absolutely necessary.
"We need to look after our healthcare service so that we can look after you," she said.
"I'm putting myself out there to say, 'I'm young, I'm fit, I'm healthy, I was doing the right things and I got coronavirus.'
"My message to healthcare workers in particular is there is no shame in contracting coronavirus.
"We are all members of the community at large.
"The reality is that we are probably going to get it, we're probably at a higher risk of getting it and the best way that we can move forward through this is by talking about it."

'I just collapsed on the floor'
27july-hcw-12495122-3x4-xlarge.jpg

Sam Martin struggled to stand while infected with COVID-19.(Supplied: Sam Martin)

Contracting coronavirus has been a life-threatening ordeal for Melbourne couple Sam Martin and Sarah Robson, who work as midwives and nurses for The Royal Women's Hospital.

Mr Martin suspects he contracted coronavirus earlier this month through community transmission and likely passed it onto Ms Robson.

Both are confident they had no contact with patients while infectious, as Mr Martin was doing educational training in a building across the road from the hospital, and Ms Robson was already isolating by the time she tested positive.
"This weakness washes over your body and you just know, 'I'm not getting enough oxygen right now'," Mr Martin told 7.30.
"I got up and basically just collapsed to the floor."

Mr Martin had symptoms so severe he was rushed to the emergency department of The Royal Melbourne and admitted to the COVID ward.
"It's so scary to know that your lungs aren't working the way that they should," Mr Martin said.
"You can feel your heart trying to compensate, trying to pump blood even harder and faster, but that it's just not working."

After three days in hospital, the 26-year-old was discharged.

'It feels like someone is stabbing my lungs'
27july-hcw2-12495126-1x1-xlarge.jpg

Sarah Robson was also admitted to the COVID ward after her partner was discharged.(Supplied: Sarah Robson)

By the time Mr Martin was sent home, Ms Robson, who had been in isolation, had tested positive to coronavirus and was beginning to develop more severe symptoms.
"It's an inflammation of the lining of the lungs, which has caused me quite severe chest pain," Ms Robson told 7.30.
"When I have acute exacerbations of the pain, it feels like someone is stabbing my lungs all over.
"The rest of the time it just feels like a constant scraping or rubbing, like sandpaper."

Ms Robson also ended up being hospitalised and spending time in the COVID ward.
"That was really upsetting and really terrifying for me," Mr Martin said, about sending his girlfriend to the hospital in an ambulance.
"You felt that hopelessness and just the anxiety around what is going to happen.
"What is this virus going to do to her?"

Ms Robson and Mr Martin are now both isolating and monitoring their symptoms at home.

Mr Martin has been feeling better, but Ms Robson's condition deteriorated again over the weekend.

The midwife has never struggled with respiratory problems before.

During the interview with 7.30, Ms Robson obviously struggled for breath and needed to use Ventolin.
"My heart's been back racing and shortness of breath has returned," she said.
"I'm just feeling completely exhausted and empty, as I did in week one.
"It's a little bit terrifying knowing that I could go down that path again."

'This can kill you'
27july-hcw3-12495128-3x2-xlarge.jpg

Sarah Robson and Sam Martin were fit and healthy before they contracted coronavirus.(Supplied: Sam Martin And Sarah Robson)

The young health care workers want others to know the virus can ravage otherwise fit and healthy people.
"This can make you really, really, really sick," Mr Martin said.
"This can kill you.
"It doesn't matter how old you are, doesn't matter how fit you are, you're not necessarily immune.
"You may be one of those lucky people who is asymptomatic, but if you're doing the wrong thing and you pass it on to someone else, it could kill them."
Despite their ordeal, both Ms Robson and Mr Martin said they have faith in their colleagues to handle the pressure of the pandemic.

"I don't think you could find a more adaptable, resilient workforce," Mr Martin said.
"They are bloody good at what they do, and so that's something that gives me hope because, you know, people are going to be sick, but we are going to be able to manage it."
"I would really appreciate the community to not, sort of, get fatigued by those messages we're hearing daily," Ms Robson said.
"You are the frontline now, as the community.
"We need to protect health care workers, protect people like Sam and I and all of the incredible staff who were able to care for both of us in our periods of hospitalisation."
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-27/more-than-700-victorian-healthcare-workers-with-covid19/12494330

Selfish stupid behavior.

Premier slams virus conspiracy theorists: 'It is about human life'
Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has blasted coronavirus conspiracy theorists for refusing to wear masks as video continues to emerge of people rebelling against the state's health directive.

Video went viral of a woman who was denied entry into a Melbourne Bunnings store over the weekend due to not wearing a mask.
<< People are calling this nasty selfish covidiot Bunnings Karen >>


Mr Andrews today labelled the behaviour of conspiracy theorists as "appalling".
"Seriously, one more comment about human rights – honestly - it is about human life," he said.
"If we continue with this stuff, standing in the carpark of Bunnings reading whatever nonsense you have pulled up from some obscure website … their views have no basis in science or fact or law.
"The thing with conspiracy theorists, the more you engage in an argument with them, the more oxygen you are giving them."

The woman threatened to have the workers at Bunnings and the police who were called sued, while claiming being asked to wear a mask was a breach of her human rights.'
Then went on today to repeat the same stupid selfish stunt at a chemist ,where she threatened the chemist staff and then the police who were called with a law suit.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/bunnings-mask-woman-seen-arguing-with-australia-post-staff-in-new-video/ar-BB17cjgO?ocid=msedgntp

<< I dealt with the Bunnings stunt yesterday . In a nut shell , she's full of BS , and 'Human rights have nothing to do with wearing a mask'.>>

Victoria Police issued 23 fines worth $200 to people for failing to wear a face mask in the past 24 hours.

Deputy Commissioner, Regional Operations Rick Nugent also condemned the blatant breaches as "selfish behaviour".
"Victoria Police is aware of a number of incidents over the weekend where people have deliberately breached the Chief Health Officer directions and are not wearing face coverings," he said.
"The behaviour of those who blatantly choose to disregard the rules on the insistence their human rights being breached is alarming.
<< there is strong evidence there is covidiot sabotage campaign where a group of Melbournian covidiots want to see maximum spread of covid19 in the community and are trying to undermine the effectiveness of social distancing restrictions and mask wearing , IMO these people are criminals and should be treated like terrorists might be , harshly and swiftly .>>

"Worse yet, it seems these people are more interested in notoriety and getting likes on social media than the health and wellbeing of their fellow Victorians.
<< No sir, it's not that trivial , it much more sinister and IMO should not be downplayed , people will end up dead from covid19 who otherwise might not have been exposed because of these "people". >>

"My message to anyone planning to break the rules is simple: no one has a human right to infect other people and place the entire Victoria community at risk.
<<
Now this "lady" has been identified publically

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/coronavirus-bunnings-karen-identity-revealed/vi-BB17em5t?ocid=msedgntp

I've been lobbying on twitter ( there have been a large number people saying lots of very nasty things about Bunnings Karen and calling for her to dealt with harshly and immediately by the Vic police to SHUT HER DOWN ) to force the Victorian police to prosecute her and her ilk and remove them from public circulation for a long time , and to get Melbournians whenever she shows her face without a mask on to make her life as uncomfortable and difficult as possible , and to force her employer to sack her too . She has to learn there a consequences and she wont get away with this , seems I have tons of support and the experts want this sorted out pronto too.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/expert-calls-for-stricter-mask-controls-to-halt-coronavirus-spread-as-melbourne-and-mitchell-shire-near-halfway-point-in-lockdown/ar-BB17doZF?ocid=msedgntp
.>>

In fact, this type of behaviour is childish and is completely unacceptable when police are working incredibly hard to keep the community safe."
Deputy Chief Medical Officer Nick Coatsworth urged for the "intolerable and completely unacceptable" threats to stop.

Dr Coatsworth said it was important for people to wear masks in order to reduce community transmission.

"That sort of behaviour has to stop. I acknowledge that wearing a mask can be difficult," he said yesterday.
"It may take a while to get used to but in all seriousness, it is just having a mask on."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/premier-slams-virus-conspiracy-theorists-it-is-about-human-life/ar-BB17dUme?ocid=msedgntp

Outside Melbourne

COVID-19 cluster at Castlemaine's Don KR Smallgoods sparks concern of central Victorian spread
The cluster of COVID-19 cases linked to the Don KR Smallgoods meat processing plant in Castlemaine has reached six, heightening concerns the virus could be spreading elsewhere in central Victoria.

Victoria's Department of Health has confirmed the number includes both staff and close contacts, and that further contact tracing is underway.

In a statement, the department said outbreak totals were likely to change as its public health team identifies links between cases and identified outbreaks.

The first case was discovered on Thursday evening, which quickly turned into two after the Department of Health identified a social contact of the employee.

On Friday, Don KR Smallgoods instructed all of its 1,300 staff to get tested and said the Castlemaine production facility would be closed until the Department of Health told them it was safe to reopen.

Bendigo Health's chief medical officer Diana Badcock warned more positive cases are likely.
"Over the next few days we do expect to get more results back and we will be expecting more cases to be positive," Ms Badcock said.
"As people are tested the most important thing is isolation. After your testing you must stay isolated.
"It isn't a reason to go and do anything other than go home, lock down, and think about the people who have meaning to you."

Don KR Smallgoods has also released information advising its meat is safe to eat as World Health Organisation guidelines say COVID-19 cannot be contracted through food or food packaging.

Effects of cluster ripple through community
The directive from Don KR Smallgoods for all its employees at Castlemaine to get tested led to a surge in demand at both Bendigo Health's drive-through and walk-in screening clinics.

Bendigo Health chief nurse and midwifery officer David Rosaia said he saw hundreds of people come through the door.
"On Friday we saw about 550 people come here for screening, and on Saturday another 530," Mr Rosaia said.

Maryborough District Health Service opened its COVID-19 screening clinic over the weekend, and a temporary drive-through testing facility was set up by Castlemaine Health on Saturday.

The outbreak also prompted Bendigo Football Netball League (BFNL) to call off two under-18 Australian rules football matches due to be played in central Victoria on Saturday.

The league first contacted members on Friday evening saying it had "been made aware that a parent of a player scheduled to play in tomorrow's round one football match between Golden Square FNC and Kangaroo FNC is an employee of Don KR Castlemaine".

It went on to say that despite the player not displaying any symptoms, the league was taking a "cautious approach" and postponing the match.

This was followed on Saturday morning with another email advising a second match would be postponed.

"As a further precautionary measure due to the recent positive COVID-19 case detected at Don KR Castlemaine, the Bendigo Football Netball League have agreed to also postpone today's scheduled round one under-18 football match at Barker's Oval Maryborough, between Maryborough FNC and Castlemaine FNC," it said.
"The league has been made aware of further family members of officials and players associated with this specific match who are currently in isolation and awaiting COVID-19 routine test results."

'Didn't want to take any chances'
BFNL manager Cameron Tomlins said the league did not want to take any chances.
"We just had a couple of clubs report to us there was a indirect link potentially from the cases down at KR in Castlemaine," Mr Tomlins said.
"There were parents of players and potentially a brother of someone linked with one of the teams.
"The information we've been given is it's very unlikely that there's been close contact from those workers within KR.
"But at this point in time, before we get any further information, we won't be taking risks, and that's the way we'll approach this cautiously."
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/covid-19-cluster-at-castlemaine-s-don-kr-smallgoods-sparks-concern-of-central-victorian-spread/ar-BB17edIR?ocid=msedgntp
 

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