Additional COVID-safe restrictions commencing 6.00pm Tuesday 25 May
This afternoon, the Acting Premier announced that, on advice from the Chief Health Officer, additional COVID-safe restrictions will commence across Metropolitan Melbourne from 6.00pm, Tuesday 25 May. The restrictions are an important extra precaution while testing and widespread contact tracing is completed in response to the growing number of exposure sites of the Northern suburbs cluster. An up-to-date list of exposure sites can be found on the Victorian Government’s coronavirus website.
These measures will affect our employees, patients and visitors in several key areas (a full list can be found on the Department of Health website).
The additional COVID-safe measures include:
- Private gatherings in the home limited to five visitors per day.
- Public gatherings limited to 30 people.
- Face masks must be worn indoors, unless an exemption applies.
A reminder that this means face masks must now be worn at all times when at a Monash Health site, including all patient and non-patient facing areas.
Advice if you have visited a Tier 1 Exposure Site
An increasing number of sites have been declared designated Tier 1 Exposure Sites and the list is changing rapidly. Please view the most up-to-date list of exposure locations here: https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/exposure-sites
If you visited any of the designated Tier 1 Exposure Sites during the times listed, you must:
- Get tested immediately.
- Isolate for 14 days. Do not attend work.
- Contact your manager.
- Contact the COVID-19 Employee Hotline on 959 45815 (7am to 7pm – seven days a week).
- Contact the DoH on 1300 651 160.
- If you test negative on day 13, you can return to work after day 14 if you have no symptoms.
Advice if you have visited a Tier 2 Exposure Site
If you visited any of the designated Tier 2 Exposure Sites during the times listed, you must:
- Get tested immediately.
- Isolate until you get a negative result. Do not attend work while awaiting test result.
- Contact your manager.
- Contact the COVID-19 Employee Hotline on 959 45815 (7am to 7pm – seven days a week).
- Monitor for symptoms in the following two weeks post-exposure and repeat testing (and isolate until the result is known) if symptoms develop.
Advice if you have visited a Tier 3 Exposure Site
If you visited any of the designated Tier 3 Exposure Sites during the times listed, you must:
- Monitor yourself for symptoms.
- If symptoms develop, get tested immediately.
- Isolate until you get a negative result. Do not attend work while awaiting test result.
- Contact your manager.
Employees who have worked in or visited a quarantine hotel
Until further notice, employees and students may not work at Monash Health within 14 days of working a shift in a quarantine hotel and can return after 14 days if symptom free.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Changes have been made to the PPE Tiers aligned to the latest community transmission figures. Please ensure you are wearing the appropriate level of PPE for the situation. If in doubt, don’t go without. Latest PPE Tiers can be viewed on our COVID-19 website.
Visitor restrictions
Visitor restrictions have changed at Monash Health including in our residential aged care facilities. Please familiarise yourselves with the latest visitation information on the Monash Health website.
Latest screening advice
Updated screening advice is now available for:
BI Portal Dashboards
As we approach our Accreditation, many of you have tracked progress by accessing the BI Portal dashboards. Some of you may be experiencing a message notifying you that you do not have permission to view your regular dashboards. We are aware of the issue and will resume the correct access level for employees as soon as possible. Employees who have ‘Manager’ status on Chris 21 should not be impacted. Find out more on our COVID-19 website.
As we are about to enter Winter, and with emerging cases and additional precautions for Melburnians, I appreciate the current situation may cause despondency. I urge you all to ensure you take care of your health and wellbeing. Today’s announcements are a reminder that COVID-19 is still with us. My Executive Team and I want you all to stay safe, take care and if you can be vaccinated, we encourage you all to please do so.
Andrew Stripp
Chief Executive
All managers are requested to share these updates with their teams and discuss at stand-ups and handovers. Please print a copy and display it in communication books and on employee noticeboards.
As advice and information evolve, please regularly consult the latest updates by visiting the Victorian coronavirus website and the Monash Health COVID-19 website.