DANICA DI GIORGIO:
Earlier I spoke with the Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Michael Kidd, about his thoughts on the outbreak. I started by asking him about the testing push underway.
[Excerpt]
MICHAEL KIDD:
A big thank you to everybody in South Australia who has fronted up to get tested and of course, it’s incredibly important now that we’ve had the publication of all the venues and sites where people who’ve been diagnosed have been to in recent days. That people look at that list and if you have been to one of those places, please stay at home and arrange to get tested.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
The cluster itself was originally linked to a large family. Is there some comfort in that, that we aren’t talking at so many different points or so many different sources here? Or is that still of concern?
MICHAEL KIDD:
Look, obviously, every outbreak that we see if of concern. But you’re quite right, this cluster has been at the moment, confined to the families of the people who are working in the quarantine medi-hotel. So what this means is we don’t yet have any cases of community transmission which have occurred outside those direct household contacts. But clearly, we’re doing all the testing to make sure that we don’t have community transmission; if we do, to make sure that we’re following that up very rigorously with the contact tracers.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
And given that this is likely to have begun in hotel quarantine, there are parallels being drawn to the situation in Victoria, where that outbreak began in hotel quarantine. Do we have an issue with compliance surrounding hotel quarantine in this country?
MICHAEL KIDD:
So, we’ve just had a major review of hotel quarantine right across the country carried out by Professor Jane Halton which looked at the practices and procedures in each of the states and territories. And Professor Halton made a number of recommendations which are being implemented. It’s absolutely essential that we have very strong infection, prevention and control in each of the hotel quarantine venues. That the staff who are serving in those settings are supported and trained in their infection, prevention and control, and that we have continual support happening. We’ve also, through the AHPPC, have recommended that the staff working in those hotels get tested on a regular basis, at least every week, so that we pick up these cases if they start to occur.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
And because of this issue in hotel quarantine in South Australia, those at the Pepper’s Hotel, they’ve now been told, the guests there have been told they now need to quarantine for another two weeks. So that’s four weeks in isolation. What are the mental health implications here? We’ve already seen some residents receiving welfare checks. How worried are you?
MICHAEL KIDD:
Look, very concerned. It’s very distressing for people who have come into the country and have done their two weeks of quarantine to now be told that their period of quarantine is being extended. Firstly, thank you to those people who are in quarantine for doing their part in preventing the spread of COVID-19 into the wider community.
We are very concerned about the emotional impact, the mental health impact of this extended quarantine. All those people are being offered our welfare checks, but they also can be proactive and reach out if they feel they are not coping at the moment, and there are people available to provide support and advice and counselling to assist people to get through this very challenging time.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
Yeah, it’s something that would be very challenging. You certainly feel for them.
Just in regards to masks. Now, South Australians are being encouraged to wear masks now given the situation. Should they be mandatory in that state?
MICHAEL KIDD:
Well, at the moment we don’t have community transmission occurring as far as we know in South Australia. But I would strongly encourage people to wear a mask at the moment as we find out what’s happening, particularly in Adelaide. And particularly encourage people who are vulnerable who are at increased risk if they were to contract COVID-19. Elderly people, it would be wise if they stayed at home while the situation is becoming clear. If they do have to leave their homes to go to their doctor, to go to their chemist, it would be highly advisable to wear a mask. At the same time, avoid crowds, make sure you’re maintaining physical distancing, make sure that you’re attending to the hand hygiene. All those things we’ve been doing since the start of the year, people need to continue.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
Alright, just finally I wanted to just ask you about the promising results reported for the Moderna vaccine in the US; 94.5 per cent effective. Is Australia looking at its own agreement on that vaccine?
MICHAEL KIDD:
Australia at the moment, as you know, has agreements with four of the companies producing vaccines. The Moderna company is not one of those four companies. However, Australia is also part of the Covax facility which is an international consortium with a number of other countries, which aims to provide access to a suite of vaccines from developers across the world. And the Covax facility at the moment is looking at the Moderna vaccine as one of its options.
DANICA DI GIORGIO:
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Michael Kidd. Appreciate your time, thank you for joining me.
MICHAEL KIDD:
Thanks Danica.
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