1 July 2020
A volunteer team of 29 South Australian nurses and paramedics is heading to Victoria to help curtail coronavirus outbreaks in suburbs across Melbourne.
It follows warnings from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews that the entire state may go into lockdown if COVID-19 cases continue to rise.
According to the ABC, a further 20 South Australian contact tracers will help investigate the Melbourne outbreaks, but remain in Adelaide.
"We want them (Victoria) to do well. We want them to get on top of this. If Victoria does well, Australia does well and that means that we do well here in South Australia,’’ SA Premier Steven Marshall told ABC Radio Adelaide this morning.
Mr Andrews this week imposed a lockdown on 10 Melbourne suburbs due to “unacceptably high’’ coronavirus cases.
The 29 South Australian clinicians will be deployed interstate for up to two weeks and will be subject to a 14-day quarantine period on their return.
"If we didn't invest the way we are, my concern is that we'd face more significant outbreaks coming into SA from Victoria,’’ SA Health Minister Stephen Wade was quoted by AAP.
He said Victorian officials requested assistance for a three-month period and SA was ready to send a second team of up to 30 clinicians for the next rotation.
The 29-strong contingent is made up of 16 nurses and it’s understood most, if not all, are ANMF (SA Branch) members.
ANMF (SA Branch) CEO/Secretary Adj. Associate Professor Elizabeth Dabars AM said the willingness of South Australian health care workers to throw themselves at Victoria’s COVID hot spots frontline was testimony to their courage and professionalism.
“We salute the bravery and humanity of these caring souls who embody the spirit of their profession in travelling to help our ailing eastern neighbours,’’ Ms Dabars said.
The travelling COVID team leader is Kathaline Spalding, who is also the Nursing Unit Manager at Lyell McEwin Hospital’s COVID-19 testing clinic.
Ms Spalding said the nurses have “all put their hands up in the last 24 hours’’ following the call from Victoria and will be testing and treating people.
“We’re really about to go into debrief and find out more information. At this stage we’re at the Alfred Hospital so this is our base … it’s very busy,’’ she said this afternoon.
“There’s just that little bit of anxiety, not sure what we’re getting ourselves into, but excited at the same time, just to be a part of it all.’’
Ms Spalding said the “No.1 objective” ultimately was to keep all of Australia safe.