ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To describe the operationalisation of a novel outdoor quarantine facility managed by the Australian Medical Assistance Team, the Howard Springs International Quarantine Facility (HSIQF) at the Centre for National Resilience in the Northern Territory, Australia. METHODS: We collated documentation and data from HSIQF to describe policies and procedures implemented and performed a descriptive analysis of key procedures and outcomes. RESULTS: From 23 October 2020 to 31 March 2021, 2.2% (129/5,987) of residents were confirmed COVD-19 cases. On average per day, 82 [Interquartile Range (IQR): 29-95] staff completed personal protective equipment (PPE) training, 94 [IQR: 90-104] staff completed antigen testing and 51 [IQR: 32-136] staff completed polymerase chain reaction testing. The operation focused on building a safe environment with infection prevention and control adherence and workforce sustainability. There was no leakage of SARS-CoV-2 to staff or the community and no PPE compromises requiring staff to quarantine for 14 days. CONCLUSION: HSIQF demonstrates the operationalisation of an effective, safe and replicable quarantine system. IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH: Quarantine is a critical public health tool for pandemic control. The HSIQF operations may be useful to inform the establishment and management of quarantine facilities for future and current disease outbreaks.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Quarantine , COVID-19/epidemiology , COVID-19/prevention & control , Humans , Northern Territory , Pandemics/prevention & control , SARS-CoV-2ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this paper is to describe the participation of a consultation-liaison (CL) psychiatrist within a hospital medical advisory committee (MAC) and examine how this may generally contribute to improved patient care as well as assist in the development of governance within the hospital. CONCLUSIONS: Psychiatrists have a role in a MAC in enhancing the recognition of psychiatric care issues within the hospital, educating other members of the committee with respect to improved recognition of mental illness affecting hospital inpatients and enhanced care of patients requiring substitute decision-making. The psychiatrist also has a role in advising the committee on psychosocial issues generally affecting the hospital service as well as informing on psychological issues that impact on hospital staff performance. To an extent, CL psychiatry also encompasses issues involving all the other medical craft groups in hospitals, offering the opportunity for a "global" perspective that may be expressed through participation in a MAC.
Subject(s)
Advisory Committees/organization & administration , Physician's Role , Psychiatry , Referral and Consultation , Hospital Administration/methods , HumansABSTRACT
After the Bali bombing on 12 October 2002, injured Australians were evacuated to Darwin. The first patients arrived at the Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH) 26 hours after the blasts. RDH assessed and resuscitated 61 patients (including 20 intensive care patients, with 15 requiring ventilation, 19 surgery and more than 20 escharotomies). RDH evacuated 48 patients to burns centres around Australia within 36 hours of the first patient arrivals at the hospital and 62 hours after the bomb blasts. The response was successful, but improvements are needed in coordination between the different groups involved in such operations.
