From all the staff at The Disability Trust we wish you a happy and healthy 2022. As we move into 2022 many of us are understandably concerned about the increasing rates of COVID-19 in our community. This is an update of the things we are doing at The Disability Trust to keep you and your loved ones safe and well in the delivery of our services.
First and foremost we have exceptional, well trained and caring staff who are focused on the needs of our participants and who understand the need to not come to work if they are a close contact, if they are unwell or if they have tested positive for COVID. We are pleased to say that we have implemented some special support to staff in relation to paid isolation leave at this time to help in those instances where isolation is required.
All of our staff have undertaken training in the correct use of PPE and best practice infection control procedures. We have plentiful stocks of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that our staff wear on all shifts to protect our participants and colleagues from exposure to COVID.
We meet daily as a senior management team and track all close contacts and COVID positive personnel and participants to ensure that risk of exposure is minimised and that staff return to work is risk managed. We have outbreak management plans in place for all services specific to the needs of the individuals who use those services and we are able to implement these plans as necessary.
We are supporting a number of participants who are COVID positive or who are close contacts to manage their health and wellbeing and to get through their illness, isolation periods and recovery.
We continue to work very closely with the NSW Department of Health, our local Public Health Units and our contacts throughout the medical system to ensure that our Managers and staff are kept up to date with all changes and developments relating to COVID and that participants with particular needs are a high priority for response and support should they require it.
We are urgently working to source more stock of Rapid Antigen Tests to support surveillance screening of staff and visitors to high risk facilities and at risk staff (i.e. those who are working in locations where we have COVID positive participants) and we continue to update our COVID Safe Risk Management Plans for all of our facilities and programs in light of the changing situation.
The Disability Trust has great expertise in managing and responding to risk and we are approaching each and every scenario relating to COVID on a case by case basis. Every facility, service or home that we operate is different as are the needs of any individual who accesses our services and so we have to approach each situation as unique and in need of a tailored and specific response.
We wish to reassure you that the dedicated staff who work at The Disability Trust are 100% committed to supporting you and your family to keep COVID safe and please don’t hesitate to reach out to us for more information or if you have any questions about your, or your loved ones, support.
