Last night the WA Premier, Mark McGowan, announced the next stage in the Perth and Peel regions’ transition out of lockdown. Whilst we are not back completely to pre-lockdown arrangements, it is positive news that we have not seen further cases of community transmission.
The State Directions for Visitors to Residential Aged Care (Stay at Home and Closure, Perth, Peel and Rottnest) No 3 have now been published. You can read more here.
The Directions just published are different to the comments made by Premier McGowan in his recent press conference and media statements - that one household can visit a patient per day in a hospital, aged care or disability care facility. This is not correct for aged care facilities.
The Directions only permit visitors for end of life support and those making a care and support visit to a resident of the aged care facility, provided that no more than one person per resident makes a care and support visit on any given day.
If you qualify for a care and support visit (i.e, you are deemed a partner in care and have previous patterns of care), you can arrange this by phoning your loved one’s home directly. Anyone who is visiting for care and support visits must wear a mask and sign in via Zipline, as per our standard protocols.
As we have noted, the Directions are subject to change by Government, and outline our, and your, legal obligations for visiting aged care facilities. We apologise for the confusion these different sources of information create and we continue to work with you to best manage this for our residents and families.
The State Directions are in effect from tomorrow morning (Saturday 1 May 2021 at 12.01am). They are expected to be in place until 12.01am on Saturday 8 May 2021 if there are no further cases of community transmission. We will update you again prior to this time to confirm next steps.
What else is in place this week?
As per the State Government’s announcement, masks will remain mandatory for our staff whilst at work at all times.
We are continuing to ensure that good infection control principles are in place across our homes. Our staff and visitors are reminded to practice good hygiene and asked to stay at home if unwell.
Thank you for your ongoing patience and support,
Jennifer Lawrence, CEO
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