More must be done to prepare and support aged care facilities across the nation to be ready for current and future outbreaks of Covid-19.
Federal Member for Macarthur, Dr Mike Freelander, and the Labor Party have again written to the Morrison Government calling for more action to address these concerns and failures within the system.
Labor is calling on the Morrison Government to urgently implement a national plan of action for Covid-19 in aged care which includes these steps:
Negotiate and establish protocols with other state and territory governments that would allow an aged care response centre to be set up immediately.
Expand and provide greater training opportunities for aged care workers in the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) and infection control practices.
Open up the retention bonus eligibility to all aged care workers in recognition of their heroic effort on the frontline of our fight against Covid-19.
“Aged care facilities require support from the Federal Government to manage, contain and control Covid-19 outbreaks; we cannot allow the rates of cases and deaths to increase,’’ said Dr Freelander pictured.
“I join my Labor colleagues in urging the Prime Minister to implement a national plan of action to assist aged care facilities.’’
If a diagnosis of Covid-19 is made in an aged care facility, Dr Freelander says the response must be immediate and transparent, with the diagnosed patient being transferred as soon as possible to a facility equipped to deal with managing Covid-19.
“These are challenging times for residents of aged care facilities and their families, with miscommunication and misunderstanding only worsening the situation,’’ he said.
Dr Freelander says open lines of communication should be established between aged care facilities and relatives.
