Australian Reports of the Virus Spread

[p--and--t]

The criticism of Victoria was how the security set up in the quarantine hotels was arranged by government as it led to a catastrophic outbreak . The South Australian outbreak is nowhere near the magnitude or has been demonstrated to have been caused in a similar way to Victoria ( amongst other things, behaviour of guards) so I don’t think there is any comparison. The Victorian government in my opinion deserved every measure of criticism it got. Hundreds and hundreds of deaths from the hotel mistakes. I am sure we will find out more detail about the South Australian outbreak in due course and if it can be traced back to a government decision, then the criticism will flow to them too.

Hopefully the SA experience will get the appropriate amount of attention and review given they have had 9 months to get ready and been able to watch what happened in Victoria and other places and have their quarantine hotel protocols, track and trace and testing procedures fully locked down and at the very best standard.

Oh and lets not forget the actual vector in Victoria was excreta on the surfaces of a hotel room infecting a hotel manager. Not the security guards, they were after that. The focus on security guards is way off beam. Infection control knowledge and process is and was the prime issue from the beginning.

 

[RooFlyer]

A fairly unsatisfactory press conference by the Tasmanian premier and chief health officer just now.
Full of praise of the South Australian response to its outbreak and full of confidence that it will be managed swiftly and properly. BUT no concession however that the Tasmanian response was over the top. For instance, some South Australians doing one of Tasmania’s remote multi day wilderness walks were sought out and escorted off the track.
Why should any tourist from any state come to Tasmania when they may be required to isolate for two weeks at The first sign of outbreak in their home state?

 

[RooFlyer]

Hopefully the SA experience will get the appropriate amount of attention and review given they have had 9 months to get ready and been able to watch what happened in Victoria and other places and have their quarantine hotel protocols, track and trace and testing procedures fully locked down and at the very best standard.

Has the South Australian government promised that the virus was eliminated in that state? I don’t think so. They know and we all know that outbreaks will occur from time to time and the current one seems to be widespread but almost entirely within one family.

Once an out break occurs, it’s the response that is key. If they bungle that, then give them both barrels so to speak. And I trust those that made the decisions within the South Australian government will own up to them.

 

[jase05]

And I trust those that made the decisions within the South Australian government will own up to them.

The talk so far is that it was contracted by a cleaner catching the virus off a solid surface. Obviously a failure in protocol or PPE.

 

[jakeseven7]

The talk so far is that it was contracted by a cleaner catching the virus off a solid surface. Obviously a failure in protocol or PPE.

Look forward to the inquiry on this and the trial by media to follow, so the inquiry should be ready say about March?
Have they picked the judge?

 

[p--and--t]

Seems people don't learn.

The mad rush is on for toilet paper in SA with some supermarkets introducing limits or running out.

It's covid folks, not a diarrhoea pandemic.

Has anyone saved all the toilet paper memes & jokes? Could get a rerun.

 

[Pushka]

Well I don't log in for a few days and 12 pages that I don't have time to go back and read.

Hmmmm, quarantine hotel, private security guards, large families. Wonder if some posters will now back off on their constant carping on about Vic? I wonder if certain ministers are now going to stand up and criticise the SA Premier for being 100% to blame?

Bit ironic the border to SA is closed to Victorians but not the reverse!

Our Xmas/New Year holiday to Adelaide cancelled today. Too risky to plan travel to that state now. The complacency of the general population in SA and WA has been nagging at me for quite a while.

Andrews said today he is considering closing the border to SA if things worsen so.........

Post automatically merged: Nov 17, 2020

Hopefully the SA experience will get the appropriate amount of attention and review given they have had 9 months to get ready and been able to watch what happened in Victoria and other places and have their quarantine hotel protocols, track and trace and testing procedures fully locked down and at the very best standard.

Oh and lets not forget the actual vector in Victoria was excreta on the surfaces of a hotel room infecting a hotel manager. Not the security guards, they were after that. The focus on security guards is way off beam. Infection control knowledge and process is and was the prime issue from the beginning.

They have now concluded that the primary person in the Adelaide outbreak who was a cleaner, and had no contact with anyone positive, so their infection was acquired by touching a contaminated surface.

 

[p--and--t]

They have now concluded that the primary person in the Adelaide outbreak who was a cleaner, and had no contact with anyone positive, so their infection was acquired by touching a contaminated surface.

So from initial reports same problem as VIC - infection of hotel staff member (assumption: cleaner worked for hotel) from contaminated surface.

 

[Pushka]

So from initial reports same problem as VIC - infection of hotel staff member (assumption: cleaner worked for hotel) from contaminated surface.

I'm not sure who employed them - but sounds possible.

But I dont think the news.com.au is exactly underplaying the situation here in SA either:
" OUTBREAK WORSENS: ‘Worst nightmare’ as SA virus cluster doubles
The fall-out from South Australia’s worst cluster in history continues, with coronavirus cases spreading across the state and testing sites struggling to get to everyone."

Not sure where the doubling came from - if from yesterday that makes it 32, which is isnt. Everyone who needs to be tested (close first and second degree contacts, hospitals, nursing homes etc) have already been tested and tomorrow they are testing them all again. There are no country areas impacted, it is all Adelaide metro area and the area east of the city has not been touched at all. (fingers crossed it stays that way)

 

[RooFlyer]

So from initial reports same problem as VIC - infection of hotel staff member (assumption: cleaner worked for hotel) from contaminated surface.

If you think that was the ‘problem’ in Victoria, then you are probably unaware of a big inquiry that’s been running for some time and the resignation of two ( so far) very senior bureaucrats. I don’t think it was because of their failure to clean properly.

 

[Flashback]

Complacency basically outside of VIC I imagine is pretty bad. Sure is in QLD.

And yes has been hilarious to see the 'non' reaction from the Federal Gov and News v SA Government in comparison. Its all been hugs and kisses. If this was QLD there would have been nukes loaded and launched within 0.5 seconds of the quarantine breach and private security involvement

If you think QLDers are complacent, pop over to the UK and see just how complacent everyone is here

Seems people don't learn.

The mad rush is on for toilet paper in SA with some supermarkets introducing limits or running out.

It's covid folks, not a diarrhoea pandemic.

Has anyone saved all the toilet paper memes & jokes? Could get a rerun.

Love it. We're in lockdown 2.0 in the UK and it's nothing like lockdown 1.0. I haven't had to queue to get into a supermarket this time and there's no issues with supply of pasta, TP, etc.........

 

[NZflygirl]

I forget his exact words but Marshall said yesterday that SA would be going against the national policy by introducing mandatory testing and that other states were looking at implementing it now aswell

Not really going against national policy. Just that SA would be the first to implement regular testing of border workers. CHO said she’d be discussing this at the AHPPC. Hopefully all states/territories take it up. When you’ve cleared community transmission, the border really is the next place you expect it to come through. With regular weekly testing you’ll limit the amount of time the virus has to spread between contacts versus finding it say 2 or 3 weeks down the track.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Hmmmm, quarantine hotel, private security guards, large families. Wonder if some posters will now back off on their constant carping on about Vic? I wonder if certain ministers are now going to stand up and criticise the SA Premier for being 100% to blame?

Seems to be quick & decisive action in SA so far. If they bungle it then let the dogs out.

Victoria's bungling was multi-faceted and compounding. If SA can stop this cluster, then it is proof of two things: one, that the VIctorian government had no idea what they were doing. and two, that learnings from the Victorian experience have been heeded.

 

[RAM]

Conspiracy overlaying conspiracy overlaying conspiracy ....

Good fun.

No theories, hard first hand experience of the cover-ups many times.

...

______________________________________________​

Perhaps if a few of the high-ups involved in the Melbourne Hotel Quarantine process had followed the never assume approach then Australia would have been much better off?

 

[RAM]

The talk so far is that it was contracted by a cleaner catching the virus off a solid surface. Obviously a failure in protocol or PPE.

True, but then again who can control sneeze for example - that's all it can take to dislodge a mask and instinctively you move your gloved hand up to your face to wipe it and then reposition the mask. CV gets into the corner of your eye and bingo, you've got an outbreak.

That's how most of the deaths in non-CV facing medical personnel early on in Italy & Germany contracted it - 90+% had perfect eyesight & did not wear glasses vs their colleagues in the same area who did and only had an 8-9% infection rate.

 

[HappyFlyerFamily]

I

Not really going against national policy. Just that SA would be the first to implement regular testing of border workers. CHO said she’d be discussing this at the AHPPC. Hopefully all states/territories take it up. When you’ve cleared community transmission, the border really is the next place you expect it to come through. With regular weekly testing you’ll limit the amount of time the virus has to spread between contacts versus finding it say 2 or 3 weeks down the track.

I’d actually disagree. I think 7 days is too long. On average that could be 4-5 days infectious which is really where we are with SA....as was NZ. 7 days regular testing just gets us to know what we didn’t know.

The US Executive testing showed us this flaw.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

If you think that was the ‘problem’ in Victoria, then you are probably unaware of a big inquiry that’s been running for some time and the resignation of two ( so far) very senior bureaucrats. I don’t think it was because of their failure to clean properly.

I'm not sure that's actually what the inquiry in Vic found? The resignation of the bureaucrats was not necessarily the hiring of security guards per se, it was that no one could remember who approved it... two very different things. I thought the resignations were for accountability - separate from the virus escaping.

 

[serfty]

I'm not sure that's actually what the inquiry in Vic found? The resignation of the bureaucrats was not necessarily the hiring of security guards per se, it was that no one could remember who approved it... two very different things. I thought the resignations were for accountability - separate from the virus escaping.

At least one of the resignations was due to 'phone records indicating that a witnesses testimony to the enquiry was incorrect. Said witness subsequently resigned.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

At least one of the resignations was due to 'phone records indicating that a witnesses testimony to the enquiry was incorrect. Said witness subsequently resigned.

Fair enough. But that isn't about infection control! In theory there shouldn't have been an issue with the use of security guards. We'll have to wait for the final report, but IIRC the contracts for service were something along the lines of full PPE and no subcontracting. The former health minister said there was nothing alarming about the use of security guards, per se.

 

[Flying mermaid]

If you think QLDers are complacent, pop over to the UK and see just how complacent everyone is here

Dr FM complains about it every time I talk to her - virus fatigue I suppose.