Webinar: New year, new variant: COVID readiness for aged residential care
This webinar, facilitated by Te Tāhū Hauora, featured infection prevention and control experts sharing their knowledge and experience helping the ARC sector prepare for COVID-19, including the Omicron variant.
Speakers
Jill Gerken
Jill is a Clinical Nurse Specialist- Infection prevention and Control working with the Southern District Health Board since December 2020. Prior to that she was a CNS-IPC at Canterbury District Health Board for the previous 19 years. Jill provided IPC advice and support to Rosewood Rest home in Christchurch during the Covid outbreak there in early 2020. Jill’s role in SDHB currently covers aged residential care facilities within the Southern region, general IPC for acute facilities, work at Queenstown airport border and SIQ set-up in the region.
Ann Whitfield
Ann Whitfield is currently the Associate Nurse Director Infection Prevention & Occupational Health for Auckland District Health Board New Zealand. Ann’s IPC career commenced in Western Australia, and over the last 17 years has held positions in tertiary hospitals, State positions and has supported in outbreaks in West Timor, Liberia, Tanzania and recently in Victoria. This experience supports her role as a Board Director for the Australasian College of Infection Prevention and Control focusing on research and building capacity within Infection Prevention.
Cheyne Chalmers
Cheyne is currently the Chief Operations Officer for Ryman Healthcare. She will share her experiences of managing recent Omicron outbreaks in aged care facilities in Australia.
Dr Kelvin Watson
Dr. Kelvin Watson is National Lead - PPE & Critical Medical Supplies, COVID-19 Health System Response.
Resources
The following guidelines from Southern DHB are available:
