Open 7days. 6am to 10pm
Email Us
Whatsapp
Recent results have shown that the stage 4 restrictions in Melbourne and stage 3 lockdown all through the rest of Victoria are effective and stabilizing the daily number of cases, and resulting in preventing new infections. Although the daily cases of coronavirus in Melbourne is showing signs of slowing down, other multiple rates of hospitalization, as well as daily deaths, continue to increase in the state, especially in the age care, and it has even been suggested by experts that it may continue.
It was discovered by the NSW government that the wrong use of PPE by employees who didn’t receive proper training was the reason behind cross-infection in the age care home. It was also gathered that the facility only had just one deep clean despite several inspections, unlike schools that perform deep cleans immediately a case of coronavirus is detected. The risk of serious illness from coronavirus increases in adults with age and older adults are even at much higher risk. The question is – why COVID aged care cases keep raising in Melbourne? Let’s look Newmarch as a case study.
Between April and May this year, Newmarch House, aged care home in Sydney experienced the rage of COVID-19. About 70 employees were infected, leading to deaths of 19 elderly. No one is still certain of the reason such happened at Newmarch because Anglicare operates the home, as well as the NSW Government, is holding on till the royal commission performs heating to the issue. However, there are obvious mistakes observed.
Your risk of getting severely ill from coronavirus increases as you grow older. For instance, those in their 50s are more exposed to a higher risk of serious illness than people in their 40s. Also, the risk of severe illness for people in their 50s is not as high as in their 60s or 70s. However, people aged 85 and above are at the highest risk for severe illness from COVID-19.
Once you know the factors that expose you to a higher risk of COVID-19, you can then decide on the kind of precautions to take as you go about your daily life. Everyone, in particular, older adults and those at higher risk of severe illness, should endeavor to take protective actions and keep their environment cleaned and disinfected, so they don’t get COVID-19.
The following measures are suggested to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the age care homes or facilities:
- Cleaning and Disinfection
Cleaning and disinfection of age care home and environment must be done as they are both essential. Cleaning comes first, and it involves wiping off dirt and germs from a surface. Popular household detergent products can be used for cleaning and are available in large numbers at the supermarket. However, ordinary cleaning doesn’t get rid of germs.
Disinfection of the surface is the next step. This means the use of chemicals to eliminate germs on surfaces. Also, you can get a popular household disinfectant from supermarkets. Make sure the products you use are marked “disinfectant” and also follow the labeled instructions. Frequently touched surfaces around the elderly should be cleaned and disinfected often – about two times a day.
- Physical Distancing
Follow these measures to ensure physical distancing:
- Look for ways to ensure physical distancing of about 1.5 meters to limit physical contact between staff and elderly or even at home.
- Use certain doorways for entry-only and exit-only if possible, and endeavor to maintain a single direction walking for everyone across the facility.
- Make sure there are no indoor or lunchroom gatherings.
- There should be restrictions on the number of people allowed into the age care home. Also, there will be a need for signage, and those subject to lockdown will need to experience some other restrictions. Check the restriction levels in Victoria to discover the latest restrictions in place in Victoria.
Living in Facilities for Older Adult
You may be worried about COVID-19 if you, a household member, or a friend is living in a nursing home, aged care facilities, or another type of elderly living center. To protect your loved ones in these facilities, the CDC has advised that such facilities should:
- Restrict visitors,
- If visitors are allowed, require them to put on face covering,
- Check healthcare workers and residents regularly for fevers and symptoms, and
- Reduce in-facility activities to maintain distance between residents and keep each other safe.
- A high level of professional cleanings is needed by facilities like aged care centers or home that house people at higher risk, such as elderly and those with underlying health issues. The difference, in this case, maybe life or death.
Public areas like food courts, pharmacies, schools, community services centers, shopping centers, supermarkets, and other institutions that usually contain many gatherings of people should get special care from professional cleaners during an outbreak, as well as in the time of a pandemic.
- Quality and experienced cleaners have been properly trained and equipped to perform any cleaning, disinfection, and sanitization of surfaced at risk of contamination from COVID-19.
- Professional cleaners also have the right equipment necessary to protect themselves from being infected when performing cleaning of hazardous areas and also have the proper techniques to dispose of contaminated waste.
- You can be certain that even during this time when supermarket shelves are almost empty and supplies are not much available to the general public, reputable professional cleaning companies will have cleaning equipment, products, and personal protective materials needed.
- Professional cleaners with a good reputation will have rules in place to make sure they comply with the current guidelines provided by the World Health Organization and the Australian Government.
Clean House Melbourne understands this time is very tough for everyone. Our team of experienced and committed professional cleaners is available to help remove some of the stress and anxiety by ensuring your premises are cleaned and disinfected properly and assist you in doing your own part to limit the spread of the pandemic through our Age Care COVID Disinfect. Contact us today to talk about your cleaning needs and get a free quote.
Conclusion
Physical or social distancing is one way to reduce the spread of coronavirus. Giving enough space between you and others make it hard for the virus to spread. Although coronavirus is currently of major concern, you should also note that majority of people showing symptoms like cough, fever, tiredness, or sore throat may be suffering from cold or other respiratory illnesses and not COVID-19.
