Year: 2022

12 January 2022

Following our last update to you on Friday 7 January, we wanted to advise you that visitor restrictions at Whiddon Largs remain in place for now. As the risk of community transmission of COVID-19 continues to escalate, on the advice of the local Public Health Unit, we are strongly discouraging residents from leaving our care home for external outings and appointments at this time.

Please talk to our Administration or Lifestyle team if you would like us to arrange a Zoom call with your loved one. Our teams are working hard to keep you connected to our loved ones at this time as we know how important this is.

We are accepting delivery of care packages for residents, however, please note that these items will be quarantined for 72 hours as a precaution. Unfortunately, perishable, unpackaged foods are unable to be accepted.

Please be reassured that while our employees are experiencing additional pressure at this time, they remain committed to providing the very best of care to residents. We are so fortunate to have a wonderful team here at Whiddon Largs, and we do welcome any feedback that you may have for our wonderful team.

12 January 2022

Further to our last update to you, a resident at Whiddon Laurieton has returned a positive rapid antigen test result. A follow-up PCR test will now be undertaken.

Visitation to Whiddon Laurieton remains restricted at this time. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds such as end of life will be permitted, and residents are strongly encouraged not to leave the care home for now. We are also asking residents to stay in their rooms at this time, again as a precautionary measure.

Employees must wear N95 masks, face shields and gloves, and full PPE when attending to the COVID positive resident, and social distancing must be observed at all times, including the staff room and nurses station.

We ask that if you have any concerns to please speak to your manager in the first instance. Please also remember our confidential EAP service contactable 24/7 on 1800 818 728.

We encourage you to have your Booster shot and send evidence of your vaccination to payroll@whiddon.com.au at your earliest convenience. Eligibility for booster shots are for those that have had their second dose at least 4 months ago.

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to Whiddon Laurieton.

12 January 2022

Further to our last update to you, pleasingly, the local Public Health Unit have advised that Haven can once again welcome back visitors. All residents in Haven have returned negative rapid antigen test results.

For now, visitation to CHAPCA remains restricted. We have had one resident return a positive rapid antigen test result. A follow-up PCR test will now be undertaken. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds such as end of life will be permitted, and residents are strongly encouraged not to leave the care home for now.

Our employees are wearing full PPE and we are working closely with the local Public Health Unit and following their advice. Our COVID-19 outbreak management plan is in place to ensure all necessary safety measures are implemented. Our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid potential spread of the virus across our care home.

Please see our guidelines for visiting Haven at this time:

• Residents are permitted to have one fully vaccinated visitors aged 12 years and over only, per day
• Visitors must have received a second dose of a COVID vaccination at least 14 days prior to their visit
• Visits must not take place in communal areas and wherever possible, visits should occur in an outdoor area
• All visitors must wear a N95 mask and face shield when visiting
• Visitors will be asked to complete a rapid antigen test as a condition of entry
• Unvaccinated visitors are only permitted to visit a resident who is at the end of life. Please speak to your loved one’s Care Manager directly to gain the necessary approval to visit

Please ensure that you:

• pre-book your visits. Please note that the number of visitors allowed at any one time may be restricted to enable management of capacity limits
• refrain from visiting if you have COVID-19 symptoms
• refrain from visiting if you are a close or casual contact of a person with confirmed COVID-19, unless they have completed their isolation and testing requirements. Close contacts should not enter high risk settings for at least 14 days since their exposure to a COVID-positive person
• do not visit if you have been overseas in the previous 14 days, unless you are fully vaccinated and have received a negative PCR test 7 days or later after arrival in NSW
• refrain from visiting if you are waiting for a COVID-19 test result
• practice good hand hygiene and socially distance
• check in to the Service NSW app AND Whiddon’s check-in system when you visit

We thank you for your understanding an support at this time.

11 January 2022

A resident at Whiddon Beaudesert Star has returned a positive rapid antigen test result today. A follow-up PCR test will now be undertaken.

As a precaution, we have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan to ensure all necessary safety measures are implemented. Our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid potential spread of the virus across our care home.

This includes restricting visitation to Whiddon Beaudesert Star at this time. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds such as end of life will be permitted, and residents are strongly encouraged not to leave the care home for now. We are also asking residents to stay in their rooms at this time, again as a precautionary measure.

Employees must wear N95 masks, face shields and gloves, and full PPE when attending to the COVID positive resident, and social distancing must be observed at all times, including the staff room and nurses station.

We ask that if you have any concerns to please speak to your manager in the first instance. Please also remember our confidential EAP service contactable 24/7 on 1800 818 728.

We encourage you to have your Booster shot and send evidence of your vaccination to payroll@whiddon.com.au at your earliest convenience. Eligibility for booster shots are for those that have had their second dose at least 4 months ago.

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to Whiddon Beaudesert Star.

11 January 2022

A resident at Whiddon Beaudesert Star has returned a positive rapid antigen test result today. A follow-up PCR test will now be undertaken.

As a precaution, we have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan to ensure all necessary safety measures are implemented. Our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid potential spread of the virus across our care home.

This includes restricting visitation to Whiddon Beaudesert Star at this time. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds such as end of life will be permitted, and residents are strongly encouraged not to leave the care home for now. We are also asking residents to stay in their rooms at this time, again as a precautionary measure.

Our employees are wearing full PPE and we will be working closely with the local Public Health Unit and following their advice.

We understand that this is a challenging time for everyone, but we want you to know that it is our highest priority to keep everyone in our family safe and well, and we are doing everything we can to achieve this. Our teams will also be working hard to help keep residents connected with their loved ones via phone and video calls wherever possible as we know how important this is.

We are also committed to keeping you up-to-date of the situation and will provide a further update once we know more.

11 January 2022

A resident at Whiddon Redhead (Keppel House) has tested positive to COVID-19 via rapid antigen testing today. A follow-up PCR test will now be undertaken. As a precaution, and on the advice of the local public health unit, we are restricting visitors to Keppel House for now. We are currently in the process of notifying families who had booked in to visit, to inform them that their booking will be cancelled. Please note that this does not impact the visitation arrangements currently in place at John Read House.

On the advice of the public health unit, residents at Keppel House will need to stay in their rooms for now, as a precaution. Only visits on compassionate grounds will be permitted on approval, and residents are strongly encouraged to not leave the care home for now.

We are working closely with the local Public Health Unit and following their advice, and as mentioned previously, we have activated our COVID-19 response plan to ensure all necessary precautionary measures are implemented. Our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid spread of the virus across our care homes. Employees across the Redhead campus continue to wear appropriate PPE and complete a rapid antigen test when they commence their shifts, to complement our robust screening processes.

We understand that this is a challenging time for everyone, but we want you to know that it is our highest priority to keep everyone in our family safe and well, and we are doing everything we can to achieve this.

We will provide a further update to you later in the week. We thank you for your support and understanding.

11 January 2022

Since our last update to you, pleasingly, no further residents at Whiddon Easton Park have tested positive to COVID-19.

Following a meeting with the local Public Health Unit, we are pleased to advise that residents at Taylor House no longer need to stay in their rooms, which was in place as a precautionary measure. Residents are now able to enjoy moving around the area/wing that their room is located in. We are hopeful to have similar good news for Sir David Martin and Easton Park Units later this week. As no residents at Arthur Webb Court have tested positive to the virus to date, this measure was not in place there.

As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in our community, and we continue to see a number of our employee test positive to COVID-19, as a precaution, we are still restricting visitation for now, based on the advice of the local public health unit. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds will be permitted on approval, and residents are strongly encouraged to not leave the care home for now, again as a precaution. We hope to be in the position to be able to welcome back visitors soon.

As previously mentioned, we have activated our COVID-19 response plan to ensure all necessary precautionary measures are implemented and our employees are wearing full PPE.

We have also been conducting rapid antigen testing onsite, to complement our strict screening processes and robust COVID-19 protocols. This will continue at this time.

We understand that this is a challenging time for everyone, but we want you to know that it is our highest priority to keep everyone in our family safe and well, and we are doing everything we can to achieve this. Our teams are working hard to facilitate phone and video calls where they can, as we know how important it is for residents to stay connected with their loved ones.

We will provide you with a further update on Friday and thank you for your understanding.

10 January 2022

Further to our update to you last week about an employee testing positive to COVID-19, we have been informed that an additional employee has tested positive. Currently, no residents at Whiddon Belmont have tested positive to COVID-19.

While the risk of potential exposure is considered low, as a precaution, we are asking residents’ families to consider delaying their visit for now if they can. If they do need to visit, they will be asked to wear an N95 mask, face shield and gown, and complete a RA test.

Employees must continue to wear full PPE (N95 masks, face shields, gown and gloves), complete a rapid antigen test, and social distancing must be observed at all times, including the staff room and nurses station.

We ask that if you have any concerns to please speak to your manager in the first instance. Please also remember our confidential EAP service contactable 24/7 on 1800 818 728.

We encourage you to have your Booster shot and send evidence of your vaccination to payroll@whiddon.com.au at your earliest convenience. Eligibility for booster shots are for those that have had their second dose at least 4 months ago.

Thank you for your ongoing support and dedication to Whiddon Belmont.

10 January 2022

Further to our update to you last week about an employee testing positive to COVID-19, we have been informed that an additional employee has tested positive to the virus. Currently, no residents at Whiddon Belmont have tested positive to COVID-19.

While the risk of potential exposure is considered low, as a precaution, we do ask that you consider delaying your visit for now if you can. If you do need to visit, you will be asked to wear an N95 mask, face shield and gown, which will be supplied to you. We also ask that you complete a rapid antigen test when you arrive.

Our employees are wearing full personal protective equipment (PPE) and our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid potential spread of the virus across our care home.

We thank you for your understanding and patience during this time. We will provide a further update to you soon.

10 January 2022

Further to our update last week informing you that two employees at Whiddon Grafton had tested positive to COVID-19, we are pleased to advise you that no further employees have tested positive to COVID-19 at this stage. Currently, no residents at Whiddon Grafton have tested positive to COVID-19.

As a precaution, and on the advice of the local public health unit, we are continuing to restrict visitation for now. Only visits for essential caring or on compassionate grounds will be permitted, and residents are strongly encouraged to not leave the care home for now, again as a precaution. Our employees are completing a rapid antigen test before commencing their shift and our robust COVID-19 management plan means that we have strict protocols in place to avoid potential spread of the virus across our care homes.

We thank you for your understanding and patience during this time. We will provide a further update to you soon.