Covid 19 coronavirus: Bay of Plenty mental health staff and patients tested after colleague tests positive

A mental health worker at Bay of Plenty District Health Board has tested positive for Covid-19.

The nurse who was working at the adult mental health unit at Tauranga Hospital, Te Whare Maiangiangi, is recovering at home and the 21 staff members who were in contact with her have been stood down and are in self isolation.

Bay of Plenty DHB acting chief executive Simon Everitt said the nurse became symptomatic mid-week and was tested at a local community based assessment centre (CBAC) on Thursday, with the result confirmed Friday night. She had not been at work since developing the symptoms.

Patients who had contact with the nurse have been tested for Covid-19, including 14 patients who are currently being cared for on the ward and three who have been discharged. They have all been told to self-isolate.

The unit has now closed and new patients are being diverted to Whakatāne Hospital or a hospital within the Lakes District Health Board. Meanwhile staff working on the ward would continue to use appropriate PPE as recommended by the Ministry of Health.

Staff and patients in contact with the nurse are being tested and staff members who return a negative test result will be required to self-isolate for 14 days from their last contact with the affected nurse.

Everitt said the nurse had been following all appropriate guidelines relating to essential health workers and had not been at work since becoming unwell.

"We are very confident that this staff member was scrupulous in following guidelines to protect themselves and others."

Direct-General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield told reporters this afternoon he had been made aware of the positive test in Tauranga on Friday and had been given an update on the steps the DHB was taken.

"I got a text two evenings ago form the chief executive outlining a very robust and fulsome response to that. I know the medical officer of health and the staff in the unit have been working very hard on this over the last couple of days to effectively ring fence that."

Bloomfield said the transmission between staff reflected that colleagues in the hospital were working closely and it was much harder for them to keep their physical distance.

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

"What it points to is making sure all those measures are in place - physical distancing, but also really good hygiene, hand washing and availability of appropriate use of PPE."

However all these three or four layers of protection for staff weren't always failsafe and that's why the MOH had a low threshold for testing staff who were symptomatic and going "very hard" with staff who may have been in contact with someone with Covid-19 were stood down and tested.