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Katie Woolf spoke with National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre Professor Len Notaras · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Yesterday we heard from the Health Minister Natasha Files following
• 0:05
  Speaker 1: the announcement on Friday that the Howard Springs Quarantine Facility
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: is set for a massive increase in Australian's returning home.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: The facility is going to accept up to two thousand
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: people a fortnite. That's up from eight hundred and fifty.
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  Speaker 1: But as you heard yesterday, many including the Australian Medical Association,
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: are questioning exactly what this is going to mean for
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: the Northern Territory. The facility will be overseen by the
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Police Commissioner Jamie Chalker and the team credited with the
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: success of this facility on the international arrival side. The
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: National Critical Care and Trauma Response Center is going to
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  Speaker 1: be transitioned out with the Northern Territory Department of Health
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: to take over. They've got to find an additional four
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: hundred staff to man that facility as well. Now joining
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  Speaker 1: me on the line is the man who heads up
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  Speaker 1: the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Center, the Executive Director,
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  Speaker 1: Professor Len Nataris. Good morning, Len, good.
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  Speaker 2: Morning, and good morning to you listeners as well. Like Katie,
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  Speaker 2: very proud to be a part of the NCCTRC and
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  Speaker 2: OSMAT as well.
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  Speaker 1: Well, then when did you first become aware that the
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  Speaker 1: National Critical Care and Trauma Response Center the OZMAT team
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: would not be overseeing the center at Howard Springs when
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: the number of repatriated ossies increases.
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  Speaker 2: Look, I think we should put it in the context.
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  Speaker 2: In the first instance, Katie, while we're federally funded, we
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  Speaker 2: work under the NT Emergency Management Legislative for a framework
• 1:39
  Speaker 2: which is headed up by the NT control of that
• 1:41
  Speaker 2: as the Police Commissioner and also the hazard manager. Was
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  Speaker 2: the achievedness of the DNT. The expansion itself is a
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  Speaker 2: tremendous news story THENT, along with the vaccine rollout, and
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  Speaker 2: in saying it's a tremendous story, it's about recognition nationally
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: and indeed internationally. Of the last one hundred and thirty
• 2:04
  Speaker 2: eight almost one hundred and forty days since October twenty
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  Speaker 2: three when we started repatriating Australians and in fact, yesterday
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  Speaker 2: we had flight number twenty seven out of London and
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  Speaker 2: we're doing just on four flights every year fortnight now
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  Speaker 2: for in succession on a weekly basis, which is about
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  Speaker 2: eight hundred coming in. Now, I first of all was
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  Speaker 2: part of the agreement back in October of last year,
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  Speaker 2: and then we moved to another agreement which was roughly December,
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  Speaker 2: which was to increase by eight point fifty a month.
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  Speaker 2: And then this is the latest agreement which I've certainly
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  Speaker 2: had visibility of to place Katie listeners and indeed all
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  Speaker 2: Territorians and returning Australian's minds at rest. It is business
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  Speaker 2: as usual. We've been tasked as the NCCTRC and OZMA
• 3:00
  Speaker 2: with those important elements of leadership, operation and management of
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  Speaker 2: a deliberate process. One to consolidate the merge, the blending
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  Speaker 2: of the two sites and then having done that, to
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  Speaker 2: assist with the transfer. Because for the information of everybody,
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  Speaker 2: since October of twenty nineteen, kb WE, OSMAT and the
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  Speaker 2: NCCC have successfully deployed just on seventeen to eighteen times.
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  Speaker 2: That's saying that the Howard Springs Centerfnational Resilience is just
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: one of those. So we've been constantly doing them as
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  Speaker 2: well as doing work with what we call the Rapid
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  Speaker 2: Response Training for the Aboriginal communities up and down the
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  Speaker 2: Northern Territory and indeed into South Australia aged care facilities.
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  Speaker 2: We've been pretty busy, so ultimately we would be looking
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  Speaker 2: at a transition at some stage.
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: So I guess you know it's not a It may
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  Speaker 1: not be a huge surprise to you guys that that
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  Speaker 1: transition is going to happen, But len, I mean, did
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  Speaker 1: you think it was going to happen as early as
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  Speaker 1: it is.
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  Speaker 2: Our look, at one stage we thought it would be.
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  Speaker 2: And this is going back to last year. We'd originally
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  Speaker 2: signed up to the thirty first of March, and that
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  Speaker 2: was with the first agreement which was for five thousand
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  Speaker 2: returning Australians. Now, as of today we're at four thousand,
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  Speaker 2: eight hundred. By tomorrow or at least Thursday, will Friday
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  Speaker 2: will be up to five thousand, so we will have
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  Speaker 2: done that well. And truly before the thirty first of March,
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  Speaker 2: it was never it was never going to be a
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  Speaker 2: contentious issue. But what is important and again to put
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  Speaker 2: everybody's mind to ease, we won't be going anywhere until
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  Speaker 2: such time as we're very comfortable because we have a
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  Speaker 2: lot of us misselfe and a team that had this
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  Speaker 2: up yeah Territorians, and we want to make sure that
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  Speaker 2: that is good and just in this in the International
• 5:05
  Speaker 2: Women's Day yesterday. Yeah, can I cry have a bit
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  Speaker 2: of a call out that pretty well the majority of
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  Speaker 2: our leadership team are women. We've got Abbi Truman who
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  Speaker 2: is the mission lead, We've got Kathle McDermott who is
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  Speaker 2: the nurse lead, and we've got Michelle Foster who is
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  Speaker 2: one of the corporate and management leads. And it keeps
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  Speaker 2: going on.
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  Speaker 1: And they are most certainly amazing women. They're women who
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  Speaker 1: some of them I know, and they are fantastic women. Lenn,
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  Speaker 1: Can I just take you back? When did you find
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  Speaker 1: out that you know that this was the way in
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  Speaker 1: which things were going to be managed down the track
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  Speaker 1: as these additional repatriation flights and additional Aussies arrived. When
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  Speaker 1: did you find out that the OZMAT team would sort
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  Speaker 1: of be transitioning out?
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  Speaker 2: Look at her about the time that the discussions and again,
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  Speaker 2: we are the product of our success over the last
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  Speaker 2: few weeks. We have Great Britain. I've talked to the
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  Speaker 2: Secretary of Straight Great Britain as well as Lord Bethel
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  Speaker 2: and a few others in their giving advice. We've talked
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  Speaker 2: to Queensland, and we've had delegations from Victoria here as well.
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  Speaker 2: Now because of that success, the Prime Minister and the
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  Speaker 2: Federal government, first of all, in a stage manner, first
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  Speaker 2: of all, in October of last year, said let's use
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  Speaker 2: the site, the space, the specialist staff and indeed the
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  Speaker 2: systems that we have in place with OZMAT to ramp
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  Speaker 2: up bringing Australians home. That happened from October. That was
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  Speaker 2: different to the splendid domestic work that was done on
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  Speaker 2: the other side, but we certainly ramp that up. To
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  Speaker 2: answer a question more specifically, as the Prime Minister became
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  Speaker 2: more excited about bringing Australian home and we were showing
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  Speaker 2: how successful even the increase to eight hundred and fifty was,
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  Speaker 2: he then started talking about the possibility and indeed our
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  Speaker 2: Chief Minister Ragunner and Minister Files the possibility of increasing
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  Speaker 2: that number. Now what they're actually doing is fantastic.
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  Speaker 1: Yell Len. The Critical Care and traum response he to that,
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  Speaker 1: OLSMAT team has very much been part of that discussion though,
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  Speaker 1: hasn't it.
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  Speaker 2: Oh yeah, look, we have we work, as I said,
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  Speaker 2: under that legislative framework which has emergency management, and we
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  Speaker 2: accept that that's how the system works. But we have
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  Speaker 2: been a party to the discussion. The NT government needs
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  Speaker 2: to and has needed to calibrate how it saw the
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  Speaker 2: transition and the work. And indeed I called say the
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  Speaker 2: Minister for National Resilience, who is Minister Files has been
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: exemplary as to federal colleague Greg Hunt. So those two
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  Speaker 2: have been staunch supporters and hence the model of OSMAT leading,
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  Speaker 2: operating and managing. First of all, as I say, the
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  Speaker 2: consolidation of the site, putting it into one site, and
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  Speaker 2: then secondly an ordered transition. It's not going to be
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  Speaker 2: something that has done in a haphazard way. When we've
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  Speaker 2: done this overseas or in any part of the country,
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  Speaker 2: whether it's the aged care response we did down in
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  Speaker 2: Victoria or in Western Australia, we go in. We're a
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  Speaker 2: rapid response group who deploy, do our job and then
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  Speaker 2: with a dignity withdraw and turn it over to the
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  Speaker 2: next goal.
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  Speaker 1: Honestly, your team has so much support from the territory
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  Speaker 1: and that was what we were hearing so loudly and
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  Speaker 1: clearly yesterday. I've got a bit that I want to
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  Speaker 1: get through. I know that we're both pressed for time
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  Speaker 1: this morning. I do want to just say that, you know,
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  Speaker 1: I guess getting to the pointy end of this lend.
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  Speaker 1: Since those repatriation flights to the Northern Territory began, like
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  Speaker 1: you said, twenty third of October last year, we've had
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  Speaker 1: around four six hundred and six international arrivals at the
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  Speaker 1: Howard Springs Center for National Resilience. Sixty seven of those
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  Speaker 1: have been positive COVID nineteen cases. Now, it's no accident
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  Speaker 1: or it's certainly you know, no coincidence that none of
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  Speaker 1: those cases have spread outside of the Howard Springs facility.
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  Speaker 1: The osmat team has done a phenomenal job at managing
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  Speaker 1: all of those cases of COVID. The real concern that
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  Speaker 1: a lot of Territorians have got at this point in
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  Speaker 1: time is that without that ozmat team on site long term,
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  Speaker 1: that we may not be so successful.
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  Speaker 2: Look, I think that we have one thing that we
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  Speaker 2: didn't have back in October of last year and indeed
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  Speaker 2: in March of last year when we did Wihan and
• 10:07
  Speaker 2: Diamond Princess, and that's the vaccine. So the vaccine is
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  Speaker 2: a critical element, so let's put that forward. The second
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  Speaker 2: one is the transition that we will facilitate, the initial management,
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  Speaker 2: the organization of the transition and so on. We'll take
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  Speaker 2: all of that into consideration, and we have absolutely no
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  Speaker 2: intention of going anywhere until such time as we're very
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  Speaker 2: very comfortable. You're absolutely right. By Friday or Saturday of
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  Speaker 2: this week, there'll have been five thousand through and in
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  Speaker 2: fact more than sixty positive cases now that we have
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  Speaker 2: contained that compared and this is exactly why Great Britain,
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  Speaker 2: why Victoria Queensland have come here and had a look
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  Speaker 2: and said, look, how have you done it? Or we've
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  Speaker 2: done it because it's the site itself is important, but
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  Speaker 2: it's a specialist out. That's the systems we have, and
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  Speaker 2: we will hand those systems appropriately and mentor those systems
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  Speaker 2: so that there is a safe environment we have. I
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  Speaker 2: remember going back to March and February March of last
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  Speaker 2: year and reassuring the folk and the rural and remote
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  Speaker 2: areas and indeed in itself bringing people out of warheart
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  Speaker 2: at the height of this with no vaccine inside had
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  Speaker 2: its risks. But we are committed to do it in
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  Speaker 2: an orderly fashion and in a very safe fashion, and
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  Speaker 2: we commit to do exactly the same now and work
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  Speaker 2: very closely. As I said Minister Files as the Minister
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  Speaker 2: for National Resilience. That's passionate about this and will also
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  Speaker 2: ensure as to will I that only the best is given.
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  Speaker 1: Well, I tell you it's you know, it's certainly I
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  Speaker 1: think comfort for the community to hear that your team
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  Speaker 1: is going to stay on as long as required. Lynn,
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  Speaker 1: Are you and your team disappointed though, to be moving out?
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  Speaker 2: No, it look as long as it is an orderly
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  Speaker 2: and a respectable process, which it will be, that that
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  Speaker 2: is all we that's what we work towards. Again, having said,
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  Speaker 2: you know, sort of right at the beginning, that we
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  Speaker 2: are a deployable asset with a nation's asset, and when
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  Speaker 2: the nation, the federal government need somebody to respond to somebody,
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  Speaker 2: it's like Ghostbusters.
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  Speaker 1: Is well, we've long said, We've long said, you're like
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  Speaker 1: the you guys are like the Swiss Army knife of
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  Speaker 1: the medical profession. And you know, I guess that that's
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  Speaker 1: the concern right now is the community has got so
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  Speaker 1: much confidence in your team, and they've got so much
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  Speaker 1: confidence in the work that you do. That's why people
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  Speaker 1: are now feeling a little bit worried, you know, about
• 12:49
  Speaker 1: the fact that it's going to be handed over to
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: a team that does not have you know, while they
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  Speaker 1: are wonderful people, and we know that there's so many
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: great members of you know, of the Northern Territory Health Department.
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  Speaker 1: We're also talking about recruiting four hundred people and then
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  Speaker 1: trying to make sure that all of those people adhere
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  Speaker 1: to these procedures and protocols that the OZMAT team has
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  Speaker 1: spent such a long period of time implementing and making
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: sure that you've got to the absolute highest standard to
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  Speaker 1: the point where we've got other countries who are learning
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: from us. You know, that's the real worry I think
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: that a lot of Territorians have got is that we
• 13:29
  Speaker 1: know that COVID is going to be coming through that center,
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  Speaker 1: and we want to make sure that when things change,
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: it's still kept to that same level that the OZMAT
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: teams had it at.
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  Speaker 2: Oh look, Okati, you've hit it on the head. And
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  Speaker 2: what we are doing is ensuring that we play a
• 13:47
  Speaker 2: significant part in building the teams for the future, ensuring
• 13:51
  Speaker 2: strong leadership for the future, and indeed using the advantages
• 13:55
  Speaker 2: of we're coming into the dry season and we've also
• 13:58
  Speaker 2: got an impeccable record up to this particular point. I'll
• 14:01
  Speaker 2: never say never in terms of things happening, but right now,
• 14:04
  Speaker 2: we've done it and we're internationally recognized, so there are
• 14:08
  Speaker 2: a number of people buying in a sense to get
• 14:12
  Speaker 2: here and have that experience, experience of a lifetime in
• 14:16
  Speaker 2: sort of the most elite facility in the country. So
• 14:20
  Speaker 2: we won't be walking away without handing over the benefits
• 14:25
  Speaker 2: of that. And as as I have suggested a couple
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: of times that the process right now will be one
• 14:31
  Speaker 2: of business as usual, will be managing, operationalizing and indeed
• 14:37
  Speaker 2: then as necessary, providing the leadership and mentoring for the future.
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: Lenn can I just ask finally this morning, is the
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: community at risk with the OZMA team moving out?
• 14:50
  Speaker 2: No, No, I don't believe so, as long as we
• 14:52
  Speaker 2: have this orderly process which we do in place. Look
• 14:55
  Speaker 2: if it was precipitous and we were just suddenly leaving
• 14:58
  Speaker 2: and all of the rest of it. My insistence has been,
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: and as two Minister files as to the yet Chief
• 15:04
  Speaker 2: Minister has been one of an orderly transition, handing over
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: all of the lessons worth over time. Over time, it
• 15:14
  Speaker 2: could be anything up to months. We haven't actually said
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: we won't be going anywhere until such time as we're
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: very comfortable one with the handover, and two with the
• 15:25
  Speaker 2: recruitment processes as well.
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: So at this point in time, there's not a definitive
• 15:29
  Speaker 1: date as to when your team will be moving out
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: of the center.
• 15:33
  Speaker 2: No, there has been some confusion about that because I
• 15:36
  Speaker 2: think that confusion arises, in part, Katie, from the fact
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: that we were originally going to move out when we've
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: done our job back on the thirty we hope, back
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: in October last year, on the thirty first of March.
• 15:47
  Speaker 2: In other words, we would have done our five thousand
• 15:50
  Speaker 2: that was then extended from that particular time because of
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: an increase in arrivals, and that has been further extended
• 15:58
  Speaker 2: as well. Yes, there's no definited date. It is to
• 16:04
  Speaker 2: do things in a say, orderly, sensible manner that ensures
• 16:10
  Speaker 2: that what we leave behind, because it's not in our
• 16:13
  Speaker 2: interest to walk away from something and have it not work. Well.
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: Yeah, well, Len Nataris, I always appreciate your time, particularly
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: this morning. I know that you're a busy man and
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: your team is incredibly busy as well. Thank you so
• 16:27
  Speaker 1: very much for having a chat with me today.
• 16:29
  Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie, And that's very much appreciated. That support
• 16:33
  Speaker 2: that I've heard from the community regardless, as has brought
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: it here to my a couple of times. Now.
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: Well, Len's it is something that I think the whole
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: community feels that you guys have done a phenomenal job,
• 16:44
  Speaker 1: and maybe that is why we're all feeling a little
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: bit worried at this point. But I am pleased to
• 16:49
  Speaker 1: hear that you're going to stay in there for as
• 16:50
  Speaker 1: long as required to make sure that we can get
• 16:52
  Speaker 1: this right. Absolutely good on you, Lenn, Thanks for your
• 16:56
  Speaker 1: time today. That is the National Critical Care and Trauma
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: Response Executive Director, Professor Len Nataras eight nine four one
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: one O four nine. If you'd like to call through