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

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Mix one oh four point nine three
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  Speaker 1: point sixty. Now, as we know, yesterday the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 1: effectively opened up to all of Australia with the Melbourne
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  Speaker 1: hotspot lifted. But as you heard on the show with
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  Speaker 1: the Chief Minister Michael Gunner, we had some issues with
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  Speaker 1: that COVID check in app which the government obviously released
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  Speaker 1: for businesses to be able to utilize. Now joining me
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  Speaker 1: on the line is the Health Minister Natasha Files. Good
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  Speaker 1: morning Minister, Good morning Katie, Good morning listeners. Minister. Has
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  Speaker 1: that check in app now been sorted for Apple phones
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  Speaker 1: or where are things at?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, I haven't had the advice that it has
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  Speaker 2: gone live for Apple phones yet, but we're very hopeful
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  Speaker 2: that that will be in place in the coming days.
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  Speaker 2: This app and this checking device is part of the
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  Speaker 2: long term plan around living with coronavirus and we've seen
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  Speaker 2: this virus evolved. We went into that lockdown earlier in
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  Speaker 2: the year and we're really adapting our lives to live
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  Speaker 2: with it. So it's a tool to support the community
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  Speaker 2: and to have that contact tracing information available for our
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  Speaker 2: public health officials. If we are to see community transmission
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  Speaker 2: so it's frustrating that it hasn't got life just yet.
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  Speaker 2: The Google platform has, but many businesses already collect the
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  Speaker 2: information and others are making do with pen and paper
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  Speaker 2: while we're just waiting for that to go live.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, and I think that that is obviously, you know,
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  Speaker 1: the reassurance here that we know that businesses can still
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  Speaker 1: just use the good old fashioned pen and paper. But
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  Speaker 1: what was the stuff up?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, we provided it to Apple and they obviously
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  Speaker 2: have to check off and an ask check that it's
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  Speaker 2: it's legal, that it's meeting their policies that they have
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  Speaker 2: and we had loud time, but with Thanksgiving in America,
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  Speaker 2: the time frames just didn't work out, unfortunately. But as
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  Speaker 2: I said, we can use other mechanisms. We're continuing to
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  Speaker 2: work with businesses, Katie, our community organizations, businesses have done
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  Speaker 2: an amazing job putting in this extra mechanism the Department
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  Speaker 2: of Health that the Chief Health Officer directions is an
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  Speaker 2: educative approach. We will work with businesses. We don't want
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  Speaker 2: to get people offside and come down head be handed.
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  Speaker 2: We want to work with the community because this is
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  Speaker 2: about collecting information for our public health officials and if
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  Speaker 2: ninety five percent of people you know, have that information
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  Speaker 2: easily at hand on an app. Makes our public health
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  Speaker 2: officials lives and jobs a lot easier than working through
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  Speaker 2: everything manually by paper.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, look, I actually think it's a good idea. It
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  Speaker 1: is that additional safeguard in place for territorians now that
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  Speaker 1: our borders are effectively open to all of Australia. I
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  Speaker 1: guess we've seen the around the nation and indeed around
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  Speaker 1: the world. The way in which this thing tends to
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  Speaker 1: spread is from those international arrivals. Now, we obviously have
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  Speaker 1: quite a few international arrivals each well each week coming
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  Speaker 1: into the territory as part of the set up with
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  Speaker 1: the federal government to repatriate or bring those Aussies back home.
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  Speaker 1: There's been a couple of flights now as I understand
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  Speaker 1: from India, how many cases of COVID do we currently
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  Speaker 1: have out at Howard Springs, Katy.
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  Speaker 2: I don't have to figures in front of me of
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  Speaker 2: exactly how many cases. I'm happy to get them to
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  Speaker 2: your producer, Runnie. But we've seen over thirteen hundred vulnerable
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  Speaker 2: Australians repatriated into Dawin with these flights with the Federal government,
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  Speaker 2: Quantus and the OZMAT team, and I can understand the
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  Speaker 2: community is concerned because they do see those numbers of
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  Speaker 2: cases published and they are accounted to the territory figures.
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  Speaker 2: But I want to reassure territories these people don't come
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  Speaker 2: in contact with the community. It's being led by OZMATT
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  Speaker 2: who have deployed around Australia and into other countries and
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  Speaker 2: have very safely managed the care of people. So in
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  Speaker 2: terms of those people, they arrive through the raft side
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  Speaker 2: at the airport, they're on specifically charted flights and then
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  Speaker 2: they go out to that how It Springs facility. And
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  Speaker 2: the reason they're coming into quarantine is because we are
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  Speaker 2: seeing these cases. Even though these individuals are tested before
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  Speaker 2: they leave India and the UK, which is where the
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  Speaker 2: flights to date have arived from, we are seeing cases
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  Speaker 2: come through. We're seeing residual cases where there's low readings
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  Speaker 2: of the virus. But this quarantine is really important.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I guess you know. That is a big question though,
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  Speaker 1: is people will be wondering exactly how many cases there are.
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  Speaker 1: I know that last week there was obviously that situation
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  Speaker 1: where there was three additional cases. I think that came
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  Speaker 1: through young child and two adults and that was on
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  Speaker 1: that flight from New Delhi. But at this stage you
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  Speaker 1: don't know exactly how many cases of COVID we've got
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  Speaker 1: out at Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, we had a flight arrive on Saturday, and
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  Speaker 2: we had another flight arrived yesterday and the figures from
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  Speaker 2: Friday was that we had nineteen positive cases had been reported.
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  Speaker 2: The total number of cases in the territories fifty three. Yeah,
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  Speaker 2: I do believe that some of those cases have gone inactive,
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  Speaker 2: so we'll continue to put out those statements through Secure Antique,
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  Speaker 2: but to reassure territories, these people are coming in to
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  Speaker 2: quarantine and that is why they have to because we
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  Speaker 2: are seeing this virus rampant in countries. Europe is on
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  Speaker 2: the rise, America and India, and some of these cases
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  Speaker 2: appear to be from previous many months ago and they've
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  Speaker 2: been undiagnosed. So really shows you that Australia's public health
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  Speaker 2: response is leading and the quarantine is vital. All right.
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  Speaker 1: So a total of nineteen cases have been reported, but
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  Speaker 1: at this stage, could there be more from those from
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  Speaker 1: that additional flight from India.
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  Speaker 2: Katie, we had the flight yesterday morning arrived from London.
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  Speaker 2: We're seeing slightly less cases off the UK flight than
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  Speaker 2: the India flight, but those people have been welcomed into
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  Speaker 2: Howard Springs, settling them in and they undergo that test.
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  Speaker 2: So I expect we will see more cases in the
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  Speaker 2: next couple of days as those people's test results come through.
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  Speaker 2: So we'll certainly make sure that that information is public.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I reckon it is incredibly important because no doubt
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  Speaker 1: there'll be people that you know that are quite concerned
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  Speaker 1: that there are obviously active cases of COVID and well
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  Speaker 1: done that they are out there at the Howard Springs
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  Speaker 1: quarantine facility. But I guess the concern is as they
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  Speaker 1: are arriving, making sure that they're not in contact with
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  Speaker 1: anybody at all out at the airport or anywhere, you know,
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  Speaker 1: to ensure that this thing doesn't spread within the Northern
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  Speaker 1: Territory community.
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  Speaker 2: Aslutely and we've seen where it went horribly wrong in
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  Speaker 2: Victoria and Adelaide. These people just to reassure territorians. This
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  Speaker 2: is why Darwin is so good at it. They arrive
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  Speaker 2: at the airport, they go in through the wrath side.
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  Speaker 2: There's some large open rooms where they can be comfortably screened.
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  Speaker 2: People can keep their distance. Our officials that work with
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  Speaker 2: them have the appropriate ppe. They're then busted out to
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  Speaker 2: that Howard Springs facility so they do not come into
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  Speaker 2: contact with general members of the public. So it's a
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  Speaker 2: very thorough process to reassure people.
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  Speaker 1: All right, Well, we'll make sure that throughout the morning.
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  Speaker 1: Hopefully we can get those numbers from you guys, just
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  Speaker 1: to make sure we can give clarity to territorians. Now, Minister,
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  Speaker 1: I know yesterday we received a message from one of
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  Speaker 1: our listeners, Derby from the DO. He asks, now the
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  Speaker 1: borders are open to everyone in Australia, our truck driver
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  Speaker 1: is still required to undertake COVID testing before being allowed
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  Speaker 1: across the border.
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  Speaker 2: So Katie, the short answer is yes, truck driver testing
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  Speaker 2: is still taking place, and the long is that it's
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  Speaker 2: part of the national code and it's continuing as our
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  Speaker 2: truck drivers close multiple jurisdictions over a period of time.
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  Speaker 2: But it is being reviewed nationally with other jurisdictions. So
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  Speaker 2: this is a measure. We don't want to suddenly see
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  Speaker 2: an outbreak and then truck drivers haven't been tested and
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  Speaker 2: we see blockages and we see issues with breaks, So
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  Speaker 2: it is being looked at now that we in Australia
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  Speaker 2: appear to be on top of the virus. We obviously
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  Speaker 2: want to have as less inconvenience to those hard working
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  Speaker 2: truck drivers as possible, But we don't want to stop
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  Speaker 2: something and then see outbreaks and have to go back
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  Speaker 2: to it. But people haven't had those tests, so it
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  Speaker 2: might seem practical to stop it now that all the
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  Speaker 2: borders are open. But this is part of a national
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  Speaker 2: code to keep those truck drivers safe and keep our
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  Speaker 2: communities safe.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, and I suppose that as things sort of move
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  Speaker 1: along and change, we will see some changes in this space.
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  Speaker 1: Even yesterday the Chief Minister confirming that we are reviewing
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  Speaker 1: those police being on our borders in some checkpoints as well.
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  Speaker 1: So it is an ever revolved beast by the sounds
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  Speaker 1: of things.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, and you know the police, we know that they've
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  Speaker 2: done an amazing job in really hot, trying conditions. Can
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  Speaker 2: we put them in a slightly more practical location, but
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  Speaker 2: ready to step up if we do see outbreak? So
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  Speaker 2: the border measures will be in place, people will be
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  Speaker 2: filling in that paperwork whilst we have no hot spots
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  Speaker 2: declared in Australia, but one could quickly be declared and
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  Speaker 2: we need to step those resources up at any.
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  Speaker 1: Point now, Minister. Just finally, yesterday we caught up with
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  Speaker 1: the Australian Nursing and Midway Free Union and spoke to
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  Speaker 1: Kath Hatcher, the acting Branch secretary. Now really frighteningly over
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  Speaker 1: the weekend it was being reported in the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 1: News that a nurse had allegedly been held at knife
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  Speaker 1: point in one of several shocking alleged incidents. That is
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  Speaker 1: what the union had said. The incident that she spoke
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  Speaker 1: of yesterday was in number one last week. But kat
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  Speaker 1: said that it's really unfortunately not uncommon for our nurses
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  Speaker 1: to face really quite dangerous situations in some of our
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  Speaker 1: remote communities. I mean, this must be pretty shocking to
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  Speaker 1: you as the Health minister, Okatie.
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  Speaker 2: I just want to be careful with my comments because
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  Speaker 2: there it was an incident, as CAF and yourself have
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  Speaker 2: spoken about, and that's being investigated by police and I
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  Speaker 2: don't want to say anything that may impact on that investigation.
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  Speaker 2: But it's completely unacceptable. These nurses, they're out there in
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  Speaker 2: trying conditions, working hard to keep people safe and to
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  Speaker 2: not keep them safe is simply unacceptable. This is an issue.
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  Speaker 2: We saw the tragic deaths of Gail Woodford in remote
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  Speaker 2: South Australia some years ago. We conducted a review. There's
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  Speaker 2: a number of recommendations that have been put in place
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  Speaker 2: and some are ongoing. We're working with durress systems and
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  Speaker 2: the tracking in vehicles, which is important to keep people
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  Speaker 2: safe in those remote communities. So we'll continue to work
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  Speaker 2: with the Nurses Federation that represents our remote area nurses
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  Speaker 2: and put in place measures to keep them safe. But
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  Speaker 2: it's unacceptable when they're going to help someone who's in
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  Speaker 2: trouble that then they are at risk.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, it is completely unacceptable. I know that kat said
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  Speaker 1: she is going to be catching up with the department
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  Speaker 1: at some point this week. I mean, do we need
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  Speaker 1: to look at some kind of legislative change here?
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  Speaker 2: So, Katie, we've put in place practical measures such as
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  Speaker 2: putting GPS tracking in vehicles as I just mentioned, some
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  Speaker 2: juressal arms that nurses can use. We have found that
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  Speaker 2: some of the technology has been problematic in the remote situation,
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  Speaker 2: so will continue to work through that. We're also working
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  Speaker 2: through with housing to make sure that accommodation is safe.
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  Speaker 2: So I'm again meeting with the Nurses Union before Christmas
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  Speaker 2: and listen to what practical ideas they may have from
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  Speaker 2: their members on the frontline. And this is something that
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  Speaker 2: we just continue need to work together. But communities, we
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  Speaker 2: all have a responsibility for those frontline workers that are
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  Speaker 2: there to help us to make sure they can do
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  Speaker 2: their job safely.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I one hundred percent agree with that. We've got
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  Speaker 1: to make sure that our nurses and all of those
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  Speaker 1: frontline workers are safe, particularly if you're working out in
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  Speaker 1: a remote community and in some cases you know you're
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  Speaker 1: out there alone without your loved ones. Minister for Health
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  Speaker 1: Natasha Files, I know that you are pressed for time
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  Speaker 1: this morning. Thank you very much for having your chat
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  Speaker 1: with us.