Author: Belinda Howell

25 May 2022

Further to our previous update, at the advice of the local Public Health Unit, we will be undertaking additional PCR testing of residents at Whiddon Grafton this Friday. Currently, we have five residents and two employees who have tested positive to COVID.

Pending these results, and no further cases of COVID-19, we hope to return to our visitation arrangements that were in place before this outbreak.

We thank you for your understanding and patience during this time. As always, please speak to one of our employees if you have any questions about any of the above.

25 May 2022

In response to a small number of employees and residents in the Violet Wing of Whiddon Beaudesert Star testing positive to COVID-19, all residents in this area are being asked to stay within the Violet Wing for now as a precaution. The local Public Health Unit have advised that all residents and employees at Whiddon Beaudesert Star will need to be tested for COVID-19 via PCR testing, as a precaution. Until the results of these tests are returned to us, Public Health Unit have advised only compassionate or essential visits are permitted at this time (which must be pre-booked).

Employees must wear an N95 mask and face shield, and full PPE in the Violet Wing. They must also complete a rapid antigen test, and social distancing must be observed at all times.

We have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan to ensure all precautionary measures are in place and continue to work closely with the local Public Health Unit and are following their advice.

We thank you for your dedication and support during this time.

24 May 2022

Further to our previous update, the local Public Health Unit have advised that all residents and employees at Whiddon Beaudesert Star will need to be tested for COVID-19 via PCR testing, as a precaution. Until the results of these tests are returned to us, Public Health Unit have advised only compassionate or essential visits are permitted at this time (which must be pre-booked).

We have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan to ensure all precautionary measures are in place and continue to work closely with the local Public Health Unit and are following their advice.

All visitors are required to undertake rapid antigen testing as a condition of entry to Whiddon Beaudesert and will be asked to wear an N95 mask and face shield, which will be provided upon entry to the home.

We want to thank you for your understanding and patience during this time, and we will provide a further update once we have received the PCR test results.

24 May 2022

Please note that Quality Assessors from the Australian Government Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission are onsite at Whiddon Maclean from today until Friday.

If you would like to speak with the assessors that are onsite to provide any feedback on the quality of your loved one’s care, you can make a booking to do so by calling our care home on (02) 6603 2600.

Alternatively, you can contact the Australian Government Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission direct on 1800 951 822 and select option 2 when prompted.

For more information visit agedcarequality.gov.au

23 May 2022

Please be advised that we have had a resident at Whiddon Belmont test positive to COVID-19. We have activated our COVID-19 management plan and are working with the local Public Health Unit to ensure all necessary precautions are in place.

For now, we have limited visitation to allow one visitor per resident at this time (for compassionate or essential visits only). These visits must be pre-booked.

All visitors are required to undertake rapid antigen testing as a condition of entry to Whiddon Belmont and will be asked to wear an N95 mask, gown  and face shield, which will be provided upon entry to the home.

We ask all visitors to monitor for any COVID-19 symptoms and remind visitors to please refrain from visiting if they are unwell.

Our teams can support you to stay connected via video and phone calls where possible. We also have the Whiddon Connect app that you can download and book a video call in with our team.

We thank you for your understanding and patience during this time. As always, please speak to one of our employees if you have any questions about any of the above.

22 May 2022

Please be advised that we have had three residents in the Kingston Wing of Whiddon Kelso test positive to COVID-19. These residents are currently isolating in their rooms. At the advice of the local Public Health Unit, all residents in the Kingston Wing are being asked to stay within the Kingston Wing for now as a precaution. PCR testing of residents in the Kingston Wing will be undertaken tomorrow.

We have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan and are working closely with the local Public Health Unit to ensure all necessary precautions are in place.

Employees must continue to wear N95 mask and face shields routinely, and full PPE when caring for a COVID-19 positive resident. They must also complete a rapid antigen test, and social distancing must be observed at all times.

After completing a rapid antigen test, staff working in Kingston and Bedwell are to walk around the outside of the building and enter Whiddon Kelso from the door to the side of the main entrance. Employees must have tea breaks in the designated break area for the Wing you are working in only.

For now, we have restricted visitation to the Kingston Wing to allow one visitor per resident at this time (for compassionate or essential visits only). These visits must be pre-booked. This does not impact visitation in other areas. We are also limiting visitation to Whiddon Kelso to weekdays only for at least the next ten days. This includes to all areas.

We thank you for your ongoing support and understanding.

22 May 2022

Please be advised that we have had three residents in the Kingston Wing of Whiddon Kelso test positive to COVID-19. These residents are currently isolating in their rooms. At the advice of the local Public Health Unit, all residents in the Kingston Wing are being asked to stay within the Kingston Wing for now as a precaution. PCR testing of residents in the Kingston Wing will be undertaken tomorrow. Please be assured that if your loved one tests positive to COVID-19, you would be contacted directly by our clinical team.

We have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan and are working closely with the local Public Health Unit to ensure all necessary precautions are in place.

For now, we have restricted visitation to the Kingston Wing to allow one visitor per resident at this time (for compassionate or essential visits only). These visits must be pre-booked. This does not impact visitation in other areas. We are also limiting visitation to Whiddon Kelso to weekdays only for at least the next ten days. This includes to all areas.

All visitors are required to undertake rapid antigen testing as a condition of entry to Whiddon Kelso and will be asked to wear an N95 mask and face shield, which will be provided upon entry to the home. All visits to Whiddon Kelso must be pre-booked.

We ask all visitors to monitor for any COVID-19 symptoms and remind visitors to please refrain from visiting if they are unwell.

We thank you for your ongoing understanding, and will provide you with a further update during the week.

22 May 2022

We wanted to ask for you patience at this time when booking in your partner-in-care visits.

Our teams are under additional pressure at the moment and it would be of great assistance if families could ring between Monday and Friday to book in these visits.

As a reminder, partner-in-care visits can be booked in for between 8am and 3.30pm on weekdays. Partners-in care will need to wear full PPE and complete a rapid antigen test as a condition of entry, and be escorted to the resident’s balcony for the visit.

We appreciate your cooperation and understanding at this time.

21 May 2022

We have had an employee test positive to COVID-19 today. This employee was wearing PPE, and as such, the risk is considered low.

As this is considered low risk, there are no changes to visitation, resident activities or outings, unless there are any changes to the situation.

Visits must be pre-booked and visitors must complete a rapid antigen test as a condition of entry, and wear an N95 mask which will be supplied.

We will provide a further update on Monday if there are any changes.

20 May 2022

We have had a small number of residents at Whiddon Redhead (in Keppel House) test positive to COVID-19. We have activated our COVID-19 outbreak management plan to ensure that all necessary precautions are in place.

The local Public Health Unit have advised that for now, residents in Keppel House are required to isolate in their rooms, as a precaution. We have restricted visitation in Keppel House to allow for one visitor per resident at this time (for compassionate or essential visits). These visits must be pre-booked. Visitors will be required to wear an N95 mask, gown, gloves and a face shield, which will be supplied. This does not impact visitation at John Read House.

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 early next week.

We thank you for your understanding and support.