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Katie Woolf spoke with Health Minister Natasha Fyles · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Hello, Katie Wolf and three point sixty online at Mix
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  Speaker 1: one O four nine dot com.
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  Speaker 2: As I've mentioned throughout the morning, in addition to Greater
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  Speaker 2: Melbourne and the local government area of Bendigo, the acting
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  Speaker 2: Chief Health Officer has declared the remainder of the state
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  Speaker 2: of Victoria to be a COVID nineteen hotspot for the
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  Speaker 2: purpose of travel into the territory, effective from noon today.
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  Speaker 2: Now joining me on the line is the Health Minister
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  Speaker 2: at Tasha Files.
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  Speaker 1: Good morning, Good morning. We'll be good morning with its minister.
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  Speaker 2: What is the latest advice for those who are traveling
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  Speaker 2: in from Victoria from midday?
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  Speaker 3: So the Chief Health Officer has declared Regional Victoria as
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  Speaker 3: of midday today will be a hotspot and that means
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  Speaker 3: people need to enter mandatory quarantine if they arrive in
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  Speaker 3: the northern territory after that point. This is in correlation, Katie,
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  Speaker 3: to Victoria easing some of its restrictions in Regional Victoria.
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  Speaker 3: The Chief Health Officer fields that we need to up
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  Speaker 3: this to keep territory and safe, so that's why he's
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  Speaker 3: made that decision.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, how many are we expecting?
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  Speaker 2: Believe that there is at least one flight that's arriving
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  Speaker 2: about twelve fifteen today, Is that right?
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  Speaker 3: So, Katie, this decision is made because Victoria is easing
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  Speaker 3: their restrictions from midnight tonight, so we're bringing in our
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  Speaker 3: restrictions from noon today. I do understand that there is
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  Speaker 3: a flight that will arrive around lunchtime, but these decisions
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  Speaker 3: aren't made on flight schedules. They're made on the clinical advice,
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  Speaker 3: and that is a clear correlation. They're using their restrictions.
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  Speaker 3: The Chechoe thinks that that's an increased risk to us,
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  Speaker 3: and so he's making the whole of Victoria a hot
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  Speaker 3: spot for the purposes of quarantine.
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  Speaker 2: But essentially, if you do arrive at twelve fifteen today
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  Speaker 2: on that flight, well you're going to have to follow
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  Speaker 2: the hot spot declaration.
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  Speaker 3: Correct, Katie. If that flight does arrive afternoon today, then
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  Speaker 3: that's what will happen. We also are encouraging anyone that's
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  Speaker 3: seen in Victoria going back to the twelves of May,
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  Speaker 3: so please keep checking every day both the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 3: and Victorian healths websites because the information is changing, particularly
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  Speaker 3: around those Tier one locations. As they do more contact
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  Speaker 3: tracing work, they're identifying more locations, So anyone who's been
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  Speaker 3: interstate in Victoria and there's a few locations in coastal
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  Speaker 3: southern New South Wales, please keep checking the website.
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  Speaker 2: And do we have any idea at this point in
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  Speaker 2: time how many people we've currently got in Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 3: Firstly, O Katie, I understand that the numbers in Howard
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  Speaker 3: Springs are around nine hundred international repatriations and around four
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  Speaker 3: hundred domestic and in Central Australia we have around sixty
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  Speaker 3: people in the Todd's facility in our springs.
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  Speaker 2: Right, is that thirteen hundred one of the higher numbers
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  Speaker 2: that we've seen out there at the facility, O.
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  Speaker 3: Katie, I would have to go back and look at
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  Speaker 3: the numbers. We certainly had many hundreds at some point
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  Speaker 3: last year when we had a number of jurisdictions locked down,
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  Speaker 3: So we certainly it's a number that we're very comfortable
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  Speaker 3: with in managing them, the international and domestic being kept
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  Speaker 3: well separate, so there's no concerns from us there.
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  Speaker 2: A question which we do keep getting asked by listeners
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  Speaker 2: is how many staff have now been recruited for that
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  Speaker 2: Howard Springs facility.
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  Speaker 3: Katie, I don't have the figure in front of me exactly,
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  Speaker 3: but I understand it's over three hundred and fifty staff.
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  Speaker 3: But I'm happy to take that on notice and provide
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  Speaker 3: some information through. But my understanding is for the approach
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  Speaker 3: of both international and domestic, there's adequate staffing.
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  Speaker 2: Okay, so more than three hundred and fifty staff at
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  Speaker 2: this point in time out there at Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 3: Going from my memory's figure that I saw earlier in
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  Speaker 3: the week.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, Now, obviously I'm assuming that we do still have
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  Speaker 2: quite a few people in self isolation. Do we have
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  Speaker 2: any idea of the numbers of those.
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  Speaker 3: So the advice I had is it was a very
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  Speaker 3: small number that had been to those Pier one locations
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  Speaker 3: and that were caught up having to stay in isolation.
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  Speaker 3: So there was of course initially anyone who'd been in
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  Speaker 3: Victoria needed to get tested and get a negative test,
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  Speaker 3: and it was just those high risk locations where they
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  Speaker 3: had to stay for the full fourteen days. But it's
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  Speaker 3: just a handful of people, Katie. We saw territories respond,
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  Speaker 3: we saw thousands of people tested, and we saw health
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  Speaker 3: respond with increased particularly after wed he spoke last week,
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  Speaker 3: increased testing facility.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, Now, I do want to talk about our road borders.
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  Speaker 2: We just caught up with John Patterson from AMSANT. He's
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  Speaker 2: concerned about there not being police or health authorities or
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  Speaker 2: health officials on those borders, particularly the Queensland and South
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  Speaker 2: Australia border.
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  Speaker 1: Do we need to take another look at this?
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  Speaker 3: So I've been in contact with the Police Commissioner this
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  Speaker 3: morning and he's certainly watching this very carefully. He's comfortable presently,
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  Speaker 3: but he's regularly assessing the situation and will act if
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  Speaker 3: he believes it's necessary. We also need to remember, Katie,
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  Speaker 3: that there's a border between Victoria and South Australia, so
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  Speaker 3: Victoria's and lockdown people can't leave their home for those
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  Speaker 3: Apart from those five reasons, then there's measures to stop
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  Speaker 3: people entering South Australia, and then there's the border form
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  Speaker 3: and the automatic number plate recognition on the territory border.
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  Speaker 3: So the Police Commission is comfortable, but he is actively
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  Speaker 3: reviewing this and if he needs to make changes he
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  Speaker 3: will Okay.
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  Speaker 2: The opposition says that they believe health officials should be
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  Speaker 2: on our borders during hotspot lockdowns. This would ensure there's
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  Speaker 2: no confusion for people entering the tier tree from hot
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  Speaker 2: spots and lessens any possible weak lenks which could potentially
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  Speaker 2: lead to community transmission. I mean the risks are high
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  Speaker 2: here in the sense that you know, you've always said
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  Speaker 2: all it takes is one case, and I guess that
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  Speaker 2: is the concern, is that one person does cross the
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  Speaker 2: border and we end up with COVID in the community.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, could we look at having public health officials
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  Speaker 2: on the borders.
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  Speaker 3: I'm not going to take my advice from the opposition
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  Speaker 3: who would have opened our borders back in June last year.
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  Speaker 1: Well, you guys, dido open the borders back then.
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  Speaker 2: You did open the borders, So I think that that
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  Speaker 2: argument's sort of null and void. What I'm asking is
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  Speaker 2: do you think that we should have public health officials
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  Speaker 2: on the borders.
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  Speaker 3: So what I can say is the information I just said,
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  Speaker 3: the police Commissioner is making these decisions based on the
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  Speaker 3: health advice, and I'll listen to that and we'll act
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  Speaker 3: on that. The nestic travel is not what it used
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  Speaker 3: to be KD. Each jurisdiction has border farm people know
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  Speaker 3: that to enter a jurisdiction they need to fill in
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  Speaker 3: that paperwork. But the police commissioner if he needs to
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  Speaker 3: just flow those resources. He will, but right now on
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  Speaker 3: the advice that he's got, he's comfortable and he's actively
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  Speaker 3: watching the situation.
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  Speaker 2: I We'll just ask that question again though, because I'm
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  Speaker 2: not asking right now. I'm not asking about whether the
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  Speaker 2: police should be on the borders. What I'm asking is
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  Speaker 2: whether we should maybe look at a different approach and
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  Speaker 2: whether having a public health officials on the borders is
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  Speaker 2: an option.
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  Speaker 3: So, Katie, this pandemic and the emergency management has relied
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  Speaker 3: on resources from both public and environmental health, from police
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  Speaker 3: as well as administrative people to support these around the borders.
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  Speaker 3: It is crossing the borders and making sure that we
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  Speaker 3: have those border forms and we have that information. It
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  Speaker 3: is a direction to fill in a border entry form
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  Speaker 3: to enter the NOTHERN territory and we have the automatic
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  Speaker 3: number FLATE recognition. So No, the decision is from the
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  Speaker 3: police Commissioner and he believes that the information is adequately
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  Speaker 3: being collected and he is watching that situation closely.
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  Speaker 2: Okay, I've got a message from a listener here. It says, Katie,
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  Speaker 2: can you please ask the Minister of the flights from
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  Speaker 2: Delhi that are heading to Purse and not to Darwin
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  Speaker 2: because we don't have enough staff to accommodate them.
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  Speaker 3: Okay, I'm not aware about change. I understand there is
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  Speaker 3: a quantous flight between Darwin and each team or team
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  Speaker 3: or left, and those flights there is capacity how it
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  Speaker 3: brings to accommodate the breakdown is, Katie, we've got around
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  Speaker 3: six hundred people who are international, vulnerable Australians being orpatriated
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  Speaker 3: through the DEFAT program, and there's a couple of one
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  Speaker 3: hundred people that are international. There's some of the oil
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  Speaker 3: rig workers and also those flights out a team or
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  Speaker 3: left and some of the quantious crew broken.
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  Speaker 2: This one, this one though, is is apparently there's flights
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  Speaker 2: from Delhi that are heading to Perth so rather than Darwin.
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  Speaker 1: Do you know if that's yeah.
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  Speaker 3: No, misunderstood you Delly to Delhi. No, my understanding, we
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  Speaker 3: have worked with the Commonwealth around that DEFAT and taking
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  Speaker 3: those flights. We've got the capacity where accepting a flight
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  Speaker 3: each week. The common West government's working with all jurisdictions
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  Speaker 3: to try and get these vulnerable Australians home. But no,
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  Speaker 3: that's not my understanding is that that flight was changed
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  Speaker 3: because of our capacity issues.
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  Speaker 1: Okay, so do we have enough staff for more flights?
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  Speaker 3: So, Katie, as I just pointed to the latest staffing
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  Speaker 3: figure that I've forgot, is that we do have the
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  Speaker 3: staff to provide the quarantining for those international appatriation flights.
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  Speaker 3: What I can say, Katie is that it has gifted
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  Speaker 3: in terms of internationally. Initially there was a significant demand
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  Speaker 3: out of Europe and those flights the numbers of people
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  Speaker 3: wanting to get on those flights as e SO defacts
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  Speaker 3: now working through other locations where vulnerable Australians might be
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  Speaker 3: caught up.
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  Speaker 1: All right.
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  Speaker 2: One of the other questions, or one of the other
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  Speaker 2: things that we've had raised with us on a number
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  Speaker 2: of occasions over the last few days, is this situation
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  Speaker 2: at the Quest in Burrama. Now, apparently a number of
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  Speaker 2: people have booked hotel rooms at the Quest in Burrama,
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  Speaker 2: but they've had those canceled. It's been revealed in the
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  Speaker 2: paper today that NT Health have booked the rooms out there.
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  Speaker 1: Is that the case, so, Katie.
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  Speaker 3: Northern Territory Health books accommodation right across the Northern Territory.
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  Speaker 3: I don't have the specifics operationally of what they haven't
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  Speaker 3: have it booked that would be extremely frustrating for people.
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  Speaker 3: If you've booked accommodation, you think in place. But that's
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  Speaker 3: a question for the operator of that accommodation.
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  Speaker 1: So but I mean, have nt Health booked out the
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  Speaker 1: whole hotel?
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  Speaker 3: I'm not aware of that detail, Katie. We book accommodation
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  Speaker 3: right across the territory, whether it's for people going out
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  Speaker 3: to remote areas visiting specialists that come into our urban
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  Speaker 3: centers such as Darwin and Ala Springs. But that is
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  Speaker 3: a question for the operators of that facility why they've
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  Speaker 3: canceled people's booking is there?
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  Speaker 2: I mean, are you though booking those hotel rooms for
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  Speaker 2: staff out at Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 3: Katie, We book accommodation right across the territory. I'm not
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  Speaker 3: going to operationally get into the ins and outs of
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  Speaker 3: what we book and who we book it for. We
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  Speaker 3: have significant contracts across Department of Health, including for accommodation.
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  Speaker 2: So you don't know whether that one out at the quest,
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  Speaker 2: whether that whole hotel has been booked for staff out
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  Speaker 2: at Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 3: No, I'm not aware of that operational detail, nor should i, Katie.
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  Speaker 3: It's not uncommon for help to book accommodation for their
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  Speaker 3: staff who then provide services into the territory for a
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  Speaker 3: range of reasons. I can absolutely understand the frustration of
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  Speaker 3: people lissive book somewhere and then that gets canceled. But
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  Speaker 3: from my perspective, that would be a question best asked
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  Speaker 3: of the operators of that facility.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I guess it just does seem like an awful
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  Speaker 2: lot of rooms. And then when you kind of you know,
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  Speaker 2: when you take your health minister hat off, I guess
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  Speaker 2: and put your tourism minister hat on. It's not a
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  Speaker 2: great look then for our tourists that are coming into
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  Speaker 2: the Northern Territory if they've got those bookings and then
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  Speaker 2: they're being canceled because the hotel rooms have been taken
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  Speaker 2: by intee Health.
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  Speaker 3: Katie, I've just explained, you know, from a health perspective,
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  Speaker 3: we have accommodation that we access right across the territory
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  Speaker 3: and a number of commercial arrangements. Absolutely that the frustration
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  Speaker 3: of those people that have booked, but it would be
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  Speaker 3: a question for that operator why they've made those changes,
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  Speaker 3: all right.
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  Speaker 2: I mean again, I just think that it's a tough one,
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  Speaker 2: particularly for those out there listening. You know they'd be
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  Speaker 2: wondering why the Health Department would need a whole hotel.
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  Speaker 3: So Katie, the Department of Health has a range of
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  Speaker 3: contracts for accommodation. You know, this is something that is
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  Speaker 3: a commercial matter that we make those bookings. We do
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  Speaker 3: need to respect that the private of our staff. We
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  Speaker 3: have people that arrange of facilities across the territory that
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  Speaker 3: are coming in to do important work, whether they're going
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  Speaker 3: out bush to do that work, and we do provide
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  Speaker 3: accommodation for them. That's certainly something that we deal with
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  Speaker 3: each and every day.
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  Speaker 1: Now, I want to talk about the check in app quickly.
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  Speaker 2: We know that almost four million check ins have been
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  Speaker 2: recorded six months on since the Territory checking app was launched.
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  Speaker 2: We did just catch up with John Patterson from amsand
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  Speaker 2: as I mentioned a little while ago, he's a bit
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  Speaker 2: concerned that in some locations people are not actually using
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  Speaker 2: that check in app and in some facilities, I guess
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  Speaker 2: you might say around the territory that the establishments aren't
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  Speaker 2: really pushing for people to actually use that.
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  Speaker 1: Check in app. Does this need to be mandatory?
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  Speaker 3: So kay? In terms of the mandatory aspect, every business
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  Speaker 3: and organization needs to review their COVID management plan every
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  Speaker 3: six months and it's a part of that COVID management
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  Speaker 3: plan to have a QR code checking. It's really simple
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  Speaker 3: to use, as those people that do use it understand,
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  Speaker 3: and we courage everybody to make sure that they've downloaded.
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  Speaker 3: You're only enter your details once. I think businesses and
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  Speaker 3: organization stuff's done a great job, but this is a
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  Speaker 3: timely reminder, and Katie, we need to have it in
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  Speaker 3: places that are accessible and also once you've entered a
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  Speaker 3: venue sometimes it's a rush to get in the door.
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  Speaker 3: Have it at more locations so that you can, as
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  Speaker 3: you do remember whilst you're in there, quickly enter it.
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  Speaker 3: We've also seen a change, Katie. You know previously it
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  Speaker 3: was if you were going to be somewhere for longer
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  Speaker 3: than fifteen minutes. The virus into State has clearly shown
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  Speaker 3: us that casual passing contact can see you know, transmission
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  Speaker 3: of coronavirus, and so we encourage everybody wherever you are
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  Speaker 3: just checking. You don't know if you'll end up staying
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  Speaker 3: longer than fifteen minutes. It's a relatively easy thing to do,
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  Speaker 3: but if we were to see community transmission in the territory.
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  Speaker 3: That's the tool that our contact traces would use, and
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  Speaker 3: we're seen into state where people haven't checked in that
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  Speaker 3: it's really caused delay and getting that information.
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  Speaker 2: So at the moment, is it actually mandatory to check
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  Speaker 2: in or is it just something that is it's actually
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  Speaker 2: you know, like you should be doing.
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  Speaker 3: No, Katie's mandatory as a part of the COVID management plan.
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  Speaker 3: So the show direction is that each business or organization
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  Speaker 3: has that and that's their responsibility to make people check in.
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  Speaker 3: So it is a bit of a tricky one, but
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  Speaker 3: businesses have done a great job, and so we need
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  Speaker 3: territoriums to make sure that they do the right thing
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  Speaker 3: and check in.
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  Speaker 2: All right, we are fast running out of time, but
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  Speaker 2: I do want to very quickly ask you. It's being
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  Speaker 2: reported that the Northern Territory's largest aboriginal health service is
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  Speaker 2: going to cease taking new patients immediately. Danilla Dilba is
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  Speaker 2: no longer going to take new patients because of what
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  Speaker 2: they have said or told other media. It's due to
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  Speaker 2: a lack of federal funding. They've written to the federal
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  Speaker 2: health minister. I mean, is this appropriate?
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  Speaker 3: So Katie primary healthcare is provided by the Commonwealth government,
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  Speaker 3: whether that's through a Medicare rebate to your GP or
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  Speaker 3: through arrangements with our aboriginal medical organizations. Danilla Dilberh do
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  Speaker 3: an amazing job here in the top end providing that healthcare.
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  Speaker 3: They have seen an increase in the number of people
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  Speaker 3: seeking their services and so they're making operational decisions. We'll
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  Speaker 3: work with the Commonwealth and Zanella Dilba because we know
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  Speaker 3: that people need to receive primary health care so that
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  Speaker 3: they can be healthy and stay out of an acute
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  Speaker 3: hospital setting. So it is concerning, but we'll continue to
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  Speaker 3: work with them.
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  Speaker 1: Do you think they're getting enough funding.
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  Speaker 3: Okatie, I'm not across their funding arrangements and it's incredibly complex,
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  Speaker 3: but we certainly hear the concerns from them that they
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  Speaker 3: feel that they're caring for an increase in people and
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  Speaker 3: so we need to work with the Commonwealth, who have
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  Speaker 3: that responsibility of providing primary health care funding to make
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  Speaker 3: sure that it's adequate. But we certainly you know from
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  Speaker 3: what they're saying that they've seen an increase and we
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  Speaker 3: need to work through this.
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  Speaker 2: All right, we are going to have to leave it
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  Speaker 2: their Health Minister Natasha Files. We appreciate your time this morning.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you, thank you,