Hospital lockdown over Covid outbreak

Organisations representing Tasmania’s health workers have warned the state’s hospitals may not be ready for the flu and Covid season, following the lockdown of a vital rehabilitation ward at Calvary St John’s in South Hobart.

While Calvary said the affected ward would not be accepting new admissions until the lockdown was lifted, Tasmanian branch secretary of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Emily Shepherd urged healthcare providers across the state to address staffing contingencies.

“The ANMF is aware that there are staffing challenges right across the state in all sectors due to the competitive nature of nursing and midwifery recruitment at present,” Ms Shepherd said.

“The impending winter period is likely to exacerbate these challenges with nurses and midwives equally affected by viruses during this period.”

Health and Community Services Union industrial manager Lucas Digney said neither the Tasmanian Health Service nor private hospitals could afford any impacts to current staffing numbers, and warned that critical services including medical imaging and oncology were particularly threatened.

“Some of these areas are already 30 to 40 per cent understaffed as it is, and if you lose even two workers, that has a significant impact on the delivery of health services,” Mr Digney said.

“But before the Government starts talking about contingencies, they need to fill all the vacant positions.”

Calvary Health Care said a small number of patients and staff in the hospital’s rehabilitation unit tested positive earlier this week to Covid.

Calvary said direct admissions to the ward were “temporarily on hold”, with new rehabilitation patients being treated in a nearby part of the hospital.