Queensland nursing home in lockdown after nurse tests positive to coronavirus

An aged care nurse in Rockhampton has tested positive for coronavirus.

North Rockhampton Nursing Centre is in lockdown after a nurse tested positive for coronavirus.

North Rockhampton Nursing Centre is in lockdown after a nurse tested positive for coronavirus. Source: Google Maps

A Queensland nursing home is in lockdown after a worker at the state-run facility tested positive for coronavirus.

A rapid response team has been sent to the North Rockhampton centre, after the nurse returned a positive test at 8pm on Thursday.

She'd been working until very recently, and there are fears for the health of 115 residents and 180 health care workers.

Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young said the nurse is suspected to have become infected during a trip to Brisbane a little while ago.

"It is very, very concerning," Dr Young told reporters on Friday.
Health Minister Stephen Miles said the rapid response team was working to identify staff and residents who'd been in contact with the infected nurse.

"They are rapidly testing a large number of people to identify whether anyone else has been affected," he told reporters.

"The centre is currentyly locked down and any staff in contact are in quarantine and have been tested."

He said the last Rockhampton case of coronavirus was seven weeks ago, on March 30, and the last active case was considered to be resolved on May 1.

The Rockhampton case was one of two new COVID-19 cases recorded in Queensland overnight.

The other is an old case involving a Queenslander who'd been in Western Australia.

Queensland currently has 17 active cases.

An outbreak at Sydney nursing home Newmarch House has led to 71 infections and 16 deaths.

Victoria records 21 new cases

Overall, about 6300 people in Australia with the virus have recovered and the death toll is 98.

Victoria has recorded another 21 cases of coronavirus overnight, with two infections linked to an outbreak at the Fawkner McDonald's restaurant and one case linked to the Cedar Meats cluster.

McDonald's Australia chief executive Andrew Gregory said most of the Fawkner site's 100 employees had been tested and many were negative, but they were awaiting the results of other tests.

The outbreak at the meat processing factory is the state's biggest COVID-19 cluster, with 90 people linked to the abattoir having been infected, including three new cases on Thursday.

The factory is now the subject of a WorkSafe investigation. The state government and Cedar Meats' management have defended the handling of the outbreak, including the decision to allow staff to work for several days after workers tested positive.
The exterior of Cedar Meats Australia is seen in Melbourne.
The exterior of Cedar Meats Australia is seen in Melbourne. Source: AAP
But Victoria's Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton has admitted authorities could have acted earlier.

"Maybe we shouldn't have waited for a third linked case," he told 3AW radio.

"Maybe for these settings, we should shut an entire place down; not just the boning room where it all started, but an entire facility."

The abattoir was shut down on 29 April but plans to partially reopen on Monday. 

Victoria's total now sits at 1,543.
In NSW on Friday, Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced that 89 new ambulances would be introduced to help ensure the "health system is prepared in case we do have an unexpected increase [or] a massive increase in the number of people who do need to go to hospital".

The state recorded eight new cases of COVID-19 overnight, after more than 12,000 people were tested for coronavirus on Thursday.

Restrictions will begin to ease in NSW today. Some restaurants and pubs will open, but for 10 patrons at a time only. Residents can now have five people at their homes and gather outside in groups of up to 10 - for sport and recreation.

Nearly 5.7 million of an estimated 16 million people have registered for the federal government's coronavirus tracing app, COVIDSafe, since it was introduced on 26 April.

People in Australia must stay at least 1.5 metres away from others. Check your state’s restrictions on gathering limits.

Testing for coronavirus is now widely available across Australia. If you are experiencing cold or flu symptoms, arrange a test by calling your doctor or contact the Coronavirus Health Information Hotline on 1800 020 080.

The federal government's coronavirus tracing app COVIDSafe is available for download from your phone's app store.

SBS is committed to informing Australia’s diverse communities about the latest COVID-19 developments. News and information is available in 63 languages at 

 


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4 min read
Published 15 May 2020 10:42am
Updated 15 May 2020 11:30am



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