Chief Executive Update – 5 August 2022
As of today, we have:
- 103 COVID-19 positive inpatients
- 181 employees with COVID-19
- 42 employees in precautionary quarantine
- 81 employees who are primary close contacts and working under public health exemption.
In this update, we cover:
- Victorian Heart Hospital update
- Countdown to Accreditation
- Where to get vaccinated
- Answering your questions about the Stronger Together Wellbeing Grants
- Preventing emergency response delays
Victorian Heart Hospital Update
Activity around the Victorian Heart Hospital continues to gather pace, with the date for planned construction completion only four months away.
A selection of key equipment, such as MRI machines, has been installed, with further deliveries anticipated in the coming weeks. Landscaping is well underway, and the building is integrating nicely into the broader Monash University precinct.
Our recruitment campaign has commenced, supported by a social media campaign with roles starting to appear on the Monash Health eRecruit platform.
You can view the latest video update from Victorian Heart Hospital General Manager and Project Director Bernadette Comitti here.
Countdown to accreditation
As we countdown to accreditation, now just over one week away, I’d encourage you all to ensure you have completed your mandatory and targeted training and have had (or booked a convenient time for) a Give Me Five or Annual Performance conversation.
After several delays to accreditation over the last two years, it’s important that you feel confident and comfortable when you meet with the assessors later this month. Therefore, please ensure you have read the past Accreditation Bulletins and visited the employee accreditation website for all the latest news and resources you need to be accreditation-ready.
We’ve all undertaken a huge amount of great work before the accreditation period was even confirmed and it will be rewarding to be able to highlight the fantastic job you do each and every day to the panel of assessors.
My thanks go to everyone for the extraordinary effort taken to get us to this point.
Where to get vaccinated
At this week’s employee forum we heard from Professor Rhonda Stuart about the importance of vaccination as we face the winter wave of COVID-19 and flu. You can watch the recording here. Rhonda was joined by Professor Tony Korman and A/Professor Katrina Nankervis to answer your questions about vaccination, so take a look if you missed it.
Flu vaccination
As a Monash Health employee, flu vaccination or a declaration is mandatory and I’m pleased to report that our vaccination rate has now reached 85%. You can walk into any of our Infection Prevention offices shown here; no bookings are required. Please bring your Medicare card and Employee ID card.
On-site pop-up COVID-19 vaccination clinics for employees
On-site pop-up vaccination clinics are available for Monash Health employees.
Pfizer vaccines are available for winter doses in line with ATAGI guidance. No bookings are required for the pop-up clinics; simply walk-in. Please bring your Medicare card and Employee ID card.
Read more about where and when you can have your winter dose.
Answering your questions about the Stronger Together Wellbeing Grants
Applications for the Stronger Together Wellbeing Grants for Monash Health teams are now open and close Friday 12 August. This is a great way to access a grant to support team-based health and wellbeing initiatives. Speak to your manager about how to find the best option for your team.
To help our cost centre managers complete their team’s grant application, we’ve answered your FAQs about the program and the application process.
Preventing emergency response delays
Earlier this year, we migrated our contact centre to a new telephone system and it’s important that you understand what to expect when dialling the internal emergency number and how best to use the paging system to ensure that emergency pages are responded to rapidly.
Thank you, as always, for the work that you do to keep our patients, community and each other safe.
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 consult the latest updates and visit the Department of Health Coronavirus website and the Monash Health COVID-19 website for employees regularly for the latest.