COVID-19 Information for our Communities

September 17, 2020

Resthaven’s primary focus is the safety and wellbeing of our resident and client community. We are closely monitoring developments in relation to the coronavirus COVID-19.

Resthaven’s COVID-19 Response Group is working through strategies and plans in line with the advice from the Commonwealth Department of Health and SA Health and will keep our community updated as the situation evolves.

Visitors

Resthaven is complying with government guidelines in relation to visitors to residential aged care.

Visiting hours in Residential aged care homes are restricted to Monday – Friday, 10 am – 4 pm and on weekends and public holidays, 1 – 3 pm. Only one visit per day is permitted by the Direction. The visit is to be of a short duration and by a maximum of only two people.
Residents of a residential home are not restricted in leaving to go for an outing, but they must inform the site of their intention to leave, the location they are going to and give an approximate time of their expected return to the site. When they are offsite, they are to ensure that social distancing and hand hygiene practices are followed, and are not to visit or be in contact with a person who has any respiratory symptoms or a fever.

Click the button below for current information about visitors to Resthaven:

Visitor Restrictions in Resthaven Residential Aged Care Homes

On 22 August 2020, the Governor of South Australia approved a further 28-day extension of the existing Declaration of a Major Emergency under the Emergency Management Act 2004 within South Australia in respect to the outbreak of COVID-19.

With some confusion evident about national and state responsibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic, Federal Aged Care Minister, Senator Richard Colbeck, has stated that ‘the [relevant] state or territory health department has responsibility for the overarching public health response, even within an aged care facility.’

When the Prime Minister makes recommendations to the states about restriction guidelines relating to COVID-19, each state must then consider how those recommendations will be applied.

South Australia assesses the current situation against the recommendations of the Prime Minister. They are not enforceable in South Australia until the State Coordinator, Police Commissioner Grant Stevens, enacts a Direction. The South Australian Directions apply to everyone living in, and entering, SA.

Under section 25, the Emergency Management (Residential Aged Care Facilities No 7) (COVID-19) Direction 2020 was revoked and replaced from 16 September 2020 by the Emergency Management (Residential Aged Care Facilities No 8) (COVID-19) Direction 2020.

View the direction Emergency Management Residential Aged Care Facilities No 8 COVID-19 Direction here. It is an offence to breach this Direction.

The key change is that visitors entering South Australia by plane from the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) no longer need to quarantine for 14 days.

All people (staff, medical practitioners, etc) entering a site must sign in and meet entry requirements, wash their hands or use the hand sanitiser found in various places across the site. Temperature checking and viewing evidence of having had a 2020 seasonal influenza vaccination is also mandatory.

Hand hygiene and health status principles apply when visiting vulnerable older people who live in the community.

Events and Activities

Resthaven has reviewed events and activities with the objective of enabling social distancing (1.5 metres).

Sadly we have postponed planned events and limited on site and external gatherings until further notice in all our residential and community services locations. This includes a number of 85^th anniversary celebrations.

We will advise residents and clients about the latest government directives. This includes restrictions on visiting and activities at residential sites, and how different types of home care services that we provide in people’s homes and service locations may be impacted.