NSW Health is responding to address the specialised needs of the aged care sector during the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes more than 940 Residential Aged Care Facilities and Multipurpose Services across the state.
A team has been established within the State Health Emergency Operations Centre (SHEOC) called SHEOC Aged Care.
The team will lead the operational planning and support to co-ordinate and escalate NSW Health's emergency response capability to COVID-19 within residential aged care facilities.
This builds on the excellent and extensive preparatory work undertaken by the Health and Social Policy Branch's Aged Care team and will further support local health districts and residential aged care facilities in preparing for the response should they have an outbreak of COVID-19.
Local health districts lead the public health response to an outbreak of COVID-19, working closely with the facilities and the Commonwealth.
SHEOC Aged Care has coordinated a detailed review of each local health district 's COVID-19 Outbreak Management Plan for residential aged care facilities, by subject matter experts across NSW Health.
To guide effective local health district planning, SHEOC Aged Care has developed a Best Practice Checklist which outlines the key themes and issues that a comprehensive Outbreak Management Plan should monitor and review. The team will continue to work with the local health districts to test and strengthen their outbreak management planning.
SHEOC Aged Care is also undertaking escalation planning to guide point-in-time capability and outline surge requirements for critical services to support the management of an outbreak within residential aged care facilities.
This will include pathways to rapidly scale:
The aim is to support local health districts to optimise care for all residents in impacted residential aged care facilities (irrespective of their COVID-19 status) and to contain and control the outbreak so it can be brought to an end as quickly and safely as possible.
SHEOC Aged Care Director Jo Holden, said the wider NSW community expects all levels of government and the private sector to use our collective learnings and expertise to prepare and respond effectively to COVID-19.
'In managing this pandemic, it is essential that our Health response remains connected and integrated, in particular with the aged care sector,' Ms Holden said.
SHEOC Aged Care is working closely with key areas across NSW Health, the Health System Strategy and Planning Division's Aged Care Unit, the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC), SHEOC Communications, Workforce and Support Services, Health Infrastructure (HI) and the Clinical Excellence Commission (CEC).
The work involves the develop clear statewide roles and responsibilities, pathways, procedures, regular communication and information sharing. In addition, a workshop co-hosted by SHEOC Aged Care, the Aged Care Unit and the Commonwealth will be held to support joint planning and preparedness
For enquiries or for more information, SHEOC Aged Care can be contacted on MOH-SHEOCAgedCare@health.nsw.gov.au
