Claims Infected Aged Care Worker Was Told To Continue Working

There are claims that an aged care worker was told to get back on the job while awaiting a Covid test result.

Sarah Marshall Director of nurse advocacy group Aged Care Matters, says she is not surprised that workers may have been advised to keep working rather than stay home and isolate.

“I’ve heard similar stories about managers of aged care homes that are so desperate for staff, because there’s not enough staff working in aged care, the Royal Commission showed us that we need more staff working in aged care homes.”

Infected aged care worker continued work at nursing home

A fifth Melbourne nursing home was forced into lockdown on Monday night after one staff member had worked a shift at another aged care facility which was listed as an exposure site.

Canberra has taken action by reinstating a policy that blocks aged care staff from working across multiple privately owned homes across Melbourne. The policy was imposed during the second wave last year but was lifted in November 2020.

Health authorities confirmed another 9 locally acquired cases on Tuesday, and the list of exposure sites climbs to over 300. Find a full list of exposure sites here.

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