In Australia, COVID positive nurses are working in hospitals amid staff shortage: Report

Amid a severe shortage of staff due to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, COVID-19 positive nurses are also being recalled to work in hospitals across New South Wales (NSW), the most populous state in Australia, as per a report by The Guardian. Hospital managers are resorting to desperate tactics amid a massive surge in infections and hospitalisation across the state, reported The Guardian. The report stated that a number of nurses working in different hospitals are concerned about working beside infected colleagues, as at least 2,500 health workers are in isolation across the state. Major Sydney hospitals and smaller regional facilities are among the public hospitals that span three local health districts in NSW.

According to nurses, they recently received unofficial advice from their hospitals asking COVID-19 positive health workers to leave their mandated isolation and return to work if they were asymptomatic. Some claim to have seen COVID-positive nurses with visible symptoms such as coughing and sneezing in the wards. Infected nurses appeared to be restricted to working in COVID wards at one Sydney hospital, however, at other hospitals nurses stated that they were treating non-COVID patients and engaging with COVID-negative personnel, The Guardian reported. 

It should be mentioned here that last week, the definition of 'close contacts' was expanded by an Australian health panel. Working colleagues must be added to the list of 'close contacts,' according to the Australian health panel's recommendations. The expert advisory panel, which included all state and territory chief health officers, also recommended altering the COVID testing protocol in addition to broadening the definition of close contacts. The panel was chaired by Australia's chief medical officer, Prof Paul Kelly. According to the panel, changing the Coronavirus testing policy was the need of the hour to lessen the burden of lab technicians. 

Country's health system "well equipped" to handle new COVID wave: PM

Meanwhile, on Monday (January 3), Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison stated that the country's health system is "well equipped" to handle the new wave of Coronavirus infections driven by the Omicron variant. Speaking to the Seven Network, the PM stated that the federal government would make all efforts to ensure that hospitals have the resources they require to deal with the increased number of admissions. Last month, Morrison also stressed that vaccination and booster doses remain the best protection against serious illness and that the country must keep moving forward with the easing of COVID restrictions. 

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