No need to panic about TB
THE Townsville Public Health Unit has urged residents not to be alarmed after a staff member at an aged care facility tested positive for tuberculosis.
Townsville Hospital confirmed the private facility staff member was in a stable condition yesterday and was receiv- ing treatment for a non- drugresistant strain of the disease.
Townsville Public Health Unit director Dr Steven Donohue said the risk of the disease spreading to the general public was very low.
“It’s a very common disease all around the world, it’s just not very common in Australia because we’re so good at getting rid of it,” he said. “All the indications are that ( the Townsville patient) is in the early stage of the disease. It will be very easy to treat.”
Dr Donohue said roughly 30 residents and 60 staff may need to be contacted by the hospital’s respiratory team.
“The key thing about all of this is if we don’t contact you or your family, then you’re not a contact,” he said. “We don’t want people to worry unnecessarily. All of the people who could possibly be contact- ed, we will talk to and make an assessment according to the standard guidelines.
“Unless we contact you, you can be sure that you’re in the clear and not at risk.”
Dr Donohue said elderly people with immune problems could be more susceptible to the disease, which sparked the push to trace contacts.
“We have a world- re- nowned system for contact tracing and testing in line with public health guidelines and that has now begun,” he said.
Dr Donohue said it was unknown if the staff member had travelled to another country and contracted the disease.
Tuberculosis can be spread when coughing produces air droplets that are then inhaled by other people.