Chief Executive Update – 13 October 2022

Chief Executive Update – 13 October 2022 

As of today, we have:    

• 32 COVID-19 positive inpatients   
• 39 employees with COVID-19    
• 2 employees in precautionary quarantine   
• 5 employees who are primary close contacts and working under public health exemption  

In this update, we cover:    

• An end to the pandemic declaration  
• Congratulations to our finalists at the Victorian Public Healthcare Awards  
• Join us for today’s Wellbeing forum, with a focus on mental health    
• Celebrating Allied Health Day on Friday   
• Annual Report tabled in Parliament  
• Launch of our first Sustainability Strategy and Action Plan  
• Stronger Together Team Wellbeing Grants update  

An end to the pandemic declaration  

As the pandemic declaration has come to an end, we have moved to make some adjustments that reflect our current situation with falling community and healthcare worker case numbers and high vaccination rates.  

You will note we have simplified our PPE requirements, with changes to PPE minimum standards coming in from midnight on Monday. The important thing to note is you should always risk assess to determine the appropriate PPE before any patient interaction. Details of these changes were outlined by Professor Rhonda Stuart at our employee forum and you can download the presentation.  

The COVID-19 isolation requirements have been removed for members of the community, but this does not cover hospitals and other sensitive settings. Healthcare workers should get tested if unwell and remain off work for seven days if COVID-19 positive. We would ask you to continue to notify us of a positive test result. If COVID-19 negative, symptoms have improved and you do not have a fever you can return to work. Read more detail here.  

We are currently reviewing our visitor settings with our healthcare partners.  

The end to the declaration is a major milestone, and you should all be incredibly proud of the role you have played and continue to play in caring for the vulnerable in our community during this remarkable time.  

Congratulations to our finalists at the Victorian Public Healthcare Awards 

Tonight, all Victorian health services will be represented at the Victorian Public Healthcare Awards at a hybrid event, online and in person at Marvel Stadium.  

The awards ceremony will be a hybrid in-person and virtual event and employees are invited to join in the celebration and watch the event live. Simply register online prior to this evening’s event. 

This is the first time the awards have been held in the last three years and I want to congratulate all finalists for the wonderful work they have done to innovate and deliver excellent care, whether in partnership or as individual health services.   

Our own teams (and their collaborators) have done incredibly well and are justifiably recognised for their outstanding work, with six finalists up for awards tonight:  

• Premier’s Health Service of the year (large) 
• Excellence in improving maternal, child and family health – Monash Women’s COVID streaming hospital for obstetric services 
• Supporting Healthy Populations – Monash Health’s South East Public Health Unit 
• Safer Care Vic award for quality and safety improvement – Keeping maternity care safe during COVID-19: have we changed the antenatal model of care forever? 
• Improving healthcare through clinical research – Precision medicine for hypertension: screening for primary aldosteronism (Hudson Institute of Medical Research, Monash Health) 
• Excellence in culturally diverse health: Reducing stillbirth at term in South Asian born mothers (Hudson Institute of Medical Research – The Ritchie Centre, Monash Women’s, Monash Health Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Monash University) 

I want to wish all teams the best for the awards. Regardless of the final outcome, it is outstanding to have reached this point.   

Join us for today’s Wellbeing Forum, with a focus on mental health  

Join us at 2pm today for a special employee wellbeing forum where we will hear from Journalist and Beyond Blue Ambassador, Brad McEwan, Comedian, Actor and Writer, Felicity Ward, and Comedian, Writer, and Broadcaster, Sammy J. 

To commemorate World Mental Health Day (Monday 10 October), Brad, Felicity and Sammy will lead an important discussion focusing on having conversations about mental health and taking actions to look after your overall health and wellbeing. 

Celebrating Allied Health Day on Friday  

This Friday is Allied Health Day, and I’d like to take the opportunity to say thank you and to recognise the contributions of all our Allied Health teams here at Monash Health. 

We have over 1,500 Allied Health employees, across 23 disciplines – they include physiotherapists, social workers, dietitians, occupational therapists, allied health assistants, podiatrists and many others. Our Allied Health teams work across our hospitals and out in the community, and they’re an integral part of what we do, across the lifespan. We have Allied Health representation at all levels of the organisation and at each level Allied Health are an integral part of the collaborative team. 

Each of you play such an important role in delivering exceptional health care for our community. 

Chief Allied Health Officer, Dani Ryan, had a wide-ranging conversation with Chief Operating Officer, Martin Keogh on Tuesday at the employee forum. If you missed it, please take a look.  

And, on Friday, take some time out to acknowledge the great skills and talents our Allied Health colleagues bring to your teams and our organisation.  

Annual Report tabled in Parliament 

Our 2021-22 Annual Report was recently tabled in the Victorian Parliament. Our extraordinary contribution to Victoria’s pandemic response is highlighted in the Report, alongside our growth in research and commitment to delivering excellent care. 

You can read more of the Report’s highlights here. Keep an eye on iNews over the coming weeks as we share some more stories from within the Report. 

Launch of our first Sustainability Strategy and Action Plan  

Monash Health is committed to mitigating our contributions to global warming and work towards adapting to new environmental conditions. We know that climate impacts are already being felt and there is great optimism about the opportunities rapid action will provide.  

We have now published our first Sustainability Strategy and Action Plan. Together, they provide a clear and common direction for us to work towards and ensure we remain on track to achieve our sustainability goals and continue to build and operate a more sustainable health service.   

Karla Vaughan, Sustainability Specialist, officially launched the strategy and action plan at a recent employee forum and discussed the importance of Monash Health’s commitment to sustainability. If you missed it, I encourage you to watch Karla’s presentation here. 

Stronger Together Team Wellbeing Grants update   

Due to the volume and variety of grant applications submitted, the notification of application results has taken longer than we would like. With many self-selected activity options submitted, the team is diligently working through individual assessments of the activities and the most effective way to meet the requests of each team.  

We are aiming to notify teams of the outcome by the end of next week.   

For further information regarding the grant application review process, visit the Be Well Be Safe Program webpage. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this update, please contact Wellbeing_Team@MonashHealth.org  

Thank you, as always, for the work that you do every day to care for our patients and each other.  

Given the extreme weather forecast over coming days, please also keep an eye on the Vic Emergency App and take great care as you move around. Stay safe.  

Martin Keogh 

Acting Chief Executive