CooperDragon":azquyqnf said:I read about Auckland going back into lockdown. That's too bad. Hopefully it won't be for too long. It has been good to read about their success over the past year and I wish them all well.
CooperDragon":umw2urcm said:Over here the latest news is that the Johnson & Johnson vaccine has been approved by the FDA. It will take a couple of months to ramp up production, but the single dose combined with the ability to transport and store it without super cold requirements should help increase vaccination numbers quite a bit by summer.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/brisbane/brisbane-hospital-locked-down-after-doctor-tests-positive-for-covid-19/ar-BB1evZtC?ocid=msedgdhpQueensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk is due to hold a press conference at 10:30am (AEST) today to reveal possible exposure sites after a doctor at Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday.
The female doctor had contact with COVID-19-positive patients at the hospital in Brisbane's south, which was placed into lockdown on Friday night, in the early hours of Wednesday.
The doctor was infectious while in the community the following day and contact tracing is underway to identify and contact all patients, staff and families who may have been exposed.
The case marks the end of Queensland's 59-day run without a locally-spread infection.
In a statement, the hospital said "tests indicate low levels of the virus, which means the staff member may have only been infectious in the community for around one day on the 11th".
A statement on the Queensland Health website said: "Due to the early stage of this, Queensland Health is in the process of contact tracing the positive case's movements. If there is a risk to the public from the hospital or any other location this person has visited, we will issue a public health alert."
Queensland Health said further details would be provided on Saturday morning.
All non-essential visits to patients in the hospital will no longer be allowed.
Anyone who must attend the hospital will be required to wear a mask.
The Emergency Department will remain open, but the public is encouraged to seek care at a nearby hospital or at a GP if possible.
Hospital staff will wear masks at all times and patients will be required to do the same unless it is not clinically appropriate.
Non-urgent outpatient bookings and elective surgery will be postponed.
Unclear if doctor received vaccine
Director of Infectious Diseases at the Mater Hospital, Paul Griffin, said the case demonstrated the need for a rapid vaccine rollout.
"I think it makes perfect sense that people that are likely to come in contact with COVID cases are vaccinated and that's certainly the intention of that 1A rollout. I'm not sure that everyone in that 1A group has been vaccinated at PA yet because we know we've had some challenges getting the vaccine out there," he said.
"I think this may serve as a timely reminder that the virus hasn't gone away despite our excellent control in this state and this country, and that's why we need to really get on with that vaccination program to further reduce the risks of events like this happening."
It is not known if the doctor had received the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine, with the rollout in the Princess Alexandra hospital beginning late last month.
The hospital has administered 3,477 doses of coronavirus vaccines since the rollout began.
"We know the vaccine starts to really kick in after a week or two at least, so if this person had been vaccinated, they would have been less likely to be infected — still possible though — and they'll be less likely to pass it on, most likely, although we have little data to support that yet," Dr Griffin said.
He said it was possible other staff would be deemed close contacts and would not be able to work while isolating.
"Our hospital system is you know, usually fairly stretched at baseline, we have some other viruses putting some strain on their hospitals and we heard about some code yellows during the week so I guess to take a hospital offline in that system and to have some staff not able to attend will mean that the system will be a little extra stretched for that period of time," he said.
Earlier this week, Cairns Hospital and Brisbane's Metro North Hospital and Health Service issued a code yellow, indicating an internal emergency due to a large number of patients.
A spokesperson for Metro North said there was no reason for alarm in the community, explaining that it was an internal code that allows hospitals to "distribute resources accordingly".
"This can include additional surgery hours, extending medical imaging services, bringing in additional staff, and creating additional bed space, if required, to improve timeliness of patient access to services," the spokesperson said.
The Princess Alexandra hospital said it was "actively working to ensure the safety of staff and patients on campus while contact tracing is undertaken".
Anyone with any COVID-19 symptoms should get tested immediately and isolate until receiving a negative result.
Located in the inner-city suburb of Woolloongabba, the hospital is one of Brisbane's largest, with a capacity of more than 1,000 beds.
Last month, the hospital became the second Pfizer vaccine hub in the state
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/other/palaszczuk-govt-closes-greater-brisbane-hospitals-to-visitors-following-new-infection/ar-BB1ex8uI?ocid=msedgdhpQueensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced all hospitals, aged care, and disability services in Greater Brisbane will be closed to visitors after a doctor tested positive for COVID-19.
he Premier said the Brisbane doctor was treating two patients with the UK strain of the virus.
“She developed symptoms on Thursday and returned a positive test late yesterday,” Ms Palaszczuk said.
“The patients she was treating have the UK strain, but we do not yet know if the doctor has that same strain, but we expect that to be the case.
“There is no need for the public, in general, to be wearing masks. We will be assessing this each day - especially over the next 72 hours - to see if we have any further community spread."
Ms Palaszczuk said the doctor had only been out in the community for a short period of time with “limited” contacts and the time between contracting the virus and her diagnosis had been “very quick”.
https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/fears-grow-of-exposure-sites-after-brisbane-doctor-gets-covid-19/ar-BB1ex4xF?ocid=msedgdhpAuthorities are racing to identify potential Covid-19 exposure sites after a doctor tested positive to the virus, plunging a major hospital into lockdown.
The junior medic at Brisbane's Princess Alexandra Hospital was infectious while out in the community on Thursday, though his exact movements are not yet clear.
The doctor had treated a patient with the ultra-infectious UK variant of the virus and returned a positive result on Friday.
Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young will likely provide further details about the case and places he visited on Saturday.
Queensland is just hours away from enjoying a fresh easing of its remaining lockdown restrictions, but this has now been called into question.
The hospital sent an email to staff labelling the incident as a 'moderate risk' and urged anyone who showed symptoms to stay home.
As you may have heard, a positive case with unknown origin has been detected in the Metro South Health catchment,' the email read.
'The case is a medical officer at the Princess Alexandra Hospital.'
The doctor had contact with Covid-infected patients on the morning of March 10 before leaving the hospital and being in the community for the next 24 hours.
The lockdown conditions include banning non-essential visitors and mandatory masks to be worn by those inside the facility.
Non-urgent and elective surgeries will also be delayed until the lockdown lifts.
The Queensland government's contact tracing team is working to track the man's movements and identify people who have been in close proximity with the doctor.
'The hospital is actively working to ensure the safety of staff and patients on campus while contact tracing is undertaken,' a Queensland Health statement said.
'Anyone with any Covid-19 symptoms should get tested immediately and isolate until you receive a negative result.'
The hospital's emergency department will remain open but the hospital is urging the public to seek assistance to other hospitals or GPs if possible.
The Princess Alexandra facility is one of Australia's main teaching hospitals with 1,050 beds and nearly 6,000 staff.
The doctor's case is the first local transmission of coronavirus in Queensland since January 11.
Meanwhile, Queensland Health has issued an urgent coronavirus warning after fragments of the virus were found in two wastewater treatment plants.
More than 60 suburbs have their water treated at the facility sparking concerns the virus might have spread undetected.
The fragments were found at the Bundaberg plant and the Gibson Island plant in south Brisbane with authorities unsure if they are from historical or new cases.
'We are concerned by the new variants that are emerging overseas that are more contagious than previous variants we have seen in Queensland,'chief health officer Dr Jeanette Young said on Friday.
'It's also possible that this detection relates to previous COVID-19 cases that can shed viral fragments for a couple of months after they are no longer infectious.'
A day earlier, authorities discovered fragments of coronavirus at other treatment plants in the state.
Two plants in Cairns, the Marlin Coast and Cairns North facilities, returned the positives results along with the Fairfield plant in Brisbane South and the Mackay South facility.
Dr Young repeated calls for anyone experiencing even mild symptoms to self-isolate and get tested as soon as possible.
'Symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, runny nose, fatigue, diarrhoea, nausea or vomiting, and loss of taste or smell,' she said.
'We can't be complacent, we're still in this pandemic.'
She said detecting new cases quickly and containing any potential spread of the virus was still an urgent priority.
COVID WASTEWATER DETECTIONS
BUNDABERG PLANT:
Ashfield
Avenell Heights
Avoca
Bargara
Branyan
Bundaberg Central
Bundaberg East
Bundaberg North
Bundaberg South
Bundaberg West
Kalkie
Kensington
Kepnock
Millbank
Mon Repos
Norville
Svensson Heights
Walkervale
GIBSON ISLAND PLANT:
Belmont
Berrinba
Burbank
Calamvale
Camp Hill
Cannon Hill
Carina
Carina Heights
Carindale
Chandler
Coorparoo
Drewvale
Eight Mile Plains
Gumdale
Hemmant
Holland Park
Karawatha
Kuraby
Lota
MacGregor
Mackenzie
Manly West
Mansfield
Mount Gravatt
Mount Gravatt East
Murarrie
Nathan
Priestdale
Ransome
Robertson
Rochedale
Runcorn
Seven Hills
Stretton
Sunnybank
Sunnybank Hills
Thorneside
Tingalpa
Upper Mount Gravatt
Wakerley
Wishart
Wynnum
Wynnum West
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-03-13/coronavirus-queensland-explainer-restrictions-ease/13225688Queensland is easing some coronavirus restrictions today as planned, despite the detection of a new case of community transmission.
Limits have been imposed on some facilities in the city, but otherwise the state is moving closer to life as normal.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said she wanted the relaxed changes to be in place ahead of the Easter school holidays.
This is what Queenslanders can now do.
Bigger parties at home and outdoors
From 1:00am today, you can have up to 100 people at your house, doubling the allowable number from 50 people yesterday.
Outdoor events can now have 500 people, which is a five-fold increase from previous restrictions.
But, if you're planning to carve up the dance floor … be sure to take it easy.
The one-dancer-per-2-square-metre rule still applies.
What about camping?
Camping is obviously a popular Easter long weekend activity, so the Premier made sure there was no limit to the number of people allowed at camping sites from today.
Previously, there was a limit of one camper for every 2 square metres.
"It means Easter camping holidays with more friends, more business for our tourism operators and … much more money for our tourism towns," Ms Palaszczuk said on Thursday.
What's the hoo-ha about lifts?
The Premier made a big deal about elevator restrictions in parliament this week.
The number of people in lifts had been restricted to just four people at any one time — until now.
rom today, that goes up to six people.
That means — in theory — an office block could fill up 33 per cent faster.
"That means more money into our sandwich bars, our coffee shops," Ms Palaszczuk said.
She touted the benefit for holidaymakers too.
"That makes holidays in beach-front high rises a bit more enjoyable," she said.
What restrictions remain?
It's important to remember the social distancing rules still apply.
This includes keeping your 1.5 metre distance, or two big steps, between people in restaurants, cafes, pubs, clubs, museums and art galleries.
All of those venues are all still under the one-person-per-2-square-metre rule.
There are also still some restrictions in place for weddings and funerals.
Weddings and funerals can have up to 200 people in any sized venue, or more if the venue is big enough to meet the one-person-per-2-square-metre ratio.
Seated ticketed venues can have 100 per cent capacity with patrons encouraged to wear masks on entry and exit.
Stadiums can have 100 per cent capacity with a COVID Safe Plan — again with masks encouraged on arrival and departure.
The state government also encourages everyone to have a mask on you when you leave home and wear it if you can't maintain distance, like on buses and trains.
cliffjackie369":a9w9lt04 said:I had my birthday yesterday, March 18th, haha. and yesterday I found out that a total lockdown is being introduced again in our city, although there were no special undertakings for this ...
I so wanted to celebrate my birthday, which was scheduled for Saturday, especially since last year it was exactly the same, our city was completely closed on March 17 in the evening ...
sadly, if such measures are necessary, this is normal.
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