Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / AMA's NT Branch President Dr Robert Parker says vaccination is the best safeguard with COVID isolation set to end on October 14

Transcript

AMA's NT Branch President Dr Robert Parker says vaccination is the best safeguard with COVID isolation set to end on October 14 · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: But Dr Parker, we know that obviously, it was revealed
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: on Friday that from October fourteen, we are going to
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: be in a situation where COVID positive people will no
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: longer be required to isolate for five days at home.
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: What was your reaction to the change.
• 0:16
  Speaker 2: It's a bit of a mixed blessing, Katie. I mean,
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: we've known for a while now that there's probably a
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: lot more COVID than the community that's been actively reported.
• 0:23
  Speaker 2: That's through the reving of the wastewater in Darwin. So apparently,
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: you know, what's officially being reported and what people have
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: actually got doesn't is not consistent. Right, it's out and
• 0:36
  Speaker 2: about in the community. Look, it's still a very dangerous bug.
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: A friend of mine recently almost died from it and
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: he's in his sixties, so it's a significant problem. It's
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: still very dangerous. I understand there are still low vaccination levels,
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: which is a concern. But the fact that obviously it's
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: around that people are people, you know, it's in the community,
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: I mean that maybe it is time to think about
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: a different strategy or IVAMA obviously has got significant concerns
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: because it is still a very dangerous and I suppose
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: the official recommendations, we keep the isolation going even though
• 1:18
  Speaker 2: it seems a lot of people aren't reporting the data.
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: Well, I guess it's a tough one because a lot
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: of people are sort of, you know, gone back to
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: business as usual anyway, I suppose, But as you've touched on,
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: it can have a huge impact on some people and
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: as you said, you know, life threatening. So the changes
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: are still sort of being finalized as understand it for
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: visitors and stuff in high risk settings like gauged care
• 1:40
  Speaker 1: as well as health and correctional facilities. What do you
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: reckon needs to happen in those kind of environments.
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: Well, again, it's very sensible, and we've still got the
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: standard isolation for those community because again we're dealing with
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: vulnerable and often very sick individuals, both nage care and
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: in healthcare settings, and obviously someone's COVID positive potentially passing
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: the virus on the people who already very unwell could
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: have fatal consequences. I think it's very sensible for caution.
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: Now, what about in remote community should some of those
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: COVID measures remain in place?
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: Again, ideally, but again it's very difficult. Again, the key
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: to this again, vaccination and vaccination levels up, and as
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: long as individuals have got the recommended levels of vaccination,
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: that is the best protection. And I mean, yes, you
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: may get the bug, but your potential for getting really
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: sick or dying from it has lessoned if you have
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: the vaccinations.
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: So, doctor Parker, based on all of those changes that
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: were indeed announced on Friday following national cabinet, what's sort
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: of been the reaction from the Northern Territories medical professionals.
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: Well, again, I think we'd always like the highest standard
• 2:50
  Speaker 2: of isolation, but unfortunately politicians are to make choices, and
• 2:54
  Speaker 2: I mean again, there are arguments that there's a lot
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: more of the bug around the community and some being reported.
• 3:01
  Speaker 2: So I think keeping it the high risk setting, keeping
• 3:04
  Speaker 2: it to people who are potentially in contact with people
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: who are very vulnerable is sensible, while accepting it is
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: around and just recommending that people have the necessary vaccinations
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: to protect themselves given that it's still going to be
• 3:16
  Speaker 2: around the community for quite a while.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: And do you reckon that these changes are going to
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: have much of an impact on our health system and
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: how things are tracking at our major hospitals.
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: Well, again, as long as people have vaccinated. The evidence
• 3:29
  Speaker 2: is very clear. But as long as people have vaccinations,
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: and again people who are at risking access the antiviral drugs,
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: that's their best health protection. And you know that the
• 3:42
  Speaker 2: evidence is very clear that people who have got vaccinations,
• 3:45
  Speaker 2: if they do get the bug, don't think they have
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: very serious or fatal health consequences that unvaccinated individuals do.
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: So it's up to the government. Yes, given the evidence,
• 3:56
  Speaker 2: you know, probably his time now to think about lessening
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: the restricts. But at the same time, the government really
• 4:02
  Speaker 2: needs to emphasize the need for protection, that people need
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: to be vaccinated.
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: And doctor Parker just briefly, how are things going at
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: the moment in our major hospitals, you know, in terms
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: of capacity and and and you know, I guess that
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: that flow of patients.
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: Through well, there's still very high levels of pressure and
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: that that's been described before and it hasn't got the
• 4:27
  Speaker 2: code yellow, but it's still a very hell of pressure.
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: The government is, or the top end, is implementing the
• 4:34
  Speaker 2: changes that were discussed a couple of months ago, and
• 4:36
  Speaker 2: there's a meeting with the Minister and Commissions tomorrow to
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: have a look at those changes. So you know that
• 4:42
  Speaker 2: has caused a lot of the changes have caused potentially
• 4:45
  Speaker 2: a lot of unrest. But there's ongoing discussion between the AMA, ASTHMA,
• 4:49
  Speaker 2: and the hospital about those situations, you know, to try
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: and develop the best tell system the territory and but
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: also to try and reduce the anxiety on collisions working
• 5:03
  Speaker 2: in the system.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: And so is it looking as though, you know, people
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: that have been in those jobs for an awful long
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: period of time, who presumably have been doing a good job,
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: that they're going to lose their positions.
• 5:14
  Speaker 2: Well, the issue is that they've got to probably reapply
• 5:17
  Speaker 2: for them going to get this five years term. But
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: the AMA has been very clear. AMA and ASTHMA have
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: been very clear that there needs to be a very
• 5:26
  Speaker 2: transparent process and that potentially, you know, very high level
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: experienced collisions outside the territory should be involved in any
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: potential recruitment of those positions. So there is any lingering,
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: bad blood or sort of a long history between potential
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: people and those collisions that that is not accounted for
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: in any recruitment process. And I mean, you know, the
• 5:54
  Speaker 2: senior bureauc has to the credit, have been quite accommodating
• 5:56
  Speaker 2: that process and have been trying to move forward with it.
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: And doctor Parker, do you think that the changes I
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: know that I believe it was on Friday, Thursday or
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: Friday last week that the Chief Minister announced that doctor
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: Frank Daily is going to now be the new see
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: of the Department of Chief Minister and Cabinet, so moving
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: away from that role within the Department of Health. Do
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: you think that that is going to have much of
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: an impact?
• 6:19
  Speaker 2: Well, we wish Frank all of this in this new
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: job and we look forward to seeing her the new CEOs.
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: Well, we'll wait and see how it all rolls out.
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: Doctor Robert Parker. Always good to catch up with you.
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: Sorry about those tech issues early on.
• 6:36
  Speaker 2: No worries, Katy, good to talk.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: Thank you,