1. An outdoor hotel quarantine facility model in Australia: best practice with optimal outcomes.
- Author
-
Curtis SJ, Trewin A, McDermott K, Were K, Walczynski T, Notaras L, and Walsh N
- Subjects
- Humans, Northern Territory, Pandemics prevention & control, SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 epidemiology, COVID-19 prevention & control, Quarantine
- Abstract
Objective: To describe the operationalisation of a novel outdoor quarantine facility managed by the Australian Medical Assistance Team, the Howard Springs International Quarantine Facility (HSIQF) at the Centre for National Resilience in the Northern Territory, Australia., Methods: We collated documentation and data from HSIQF to describe policies and procedures implemented and performed a descriptive analysis of key procedures and outcomes., Results: From 23 October 2020 to 31 March 2021, 2.2% (129/5,987) of residents were confirmed COVD-19 cases. On average per day, 82 [Interquartile Range (IQR): 29-95] staff completed personal protective equipment (PPE) training, 94 [IQR: 90-104] staff completed antigen testing and 51 [IQR: 32-136] staff completed polymerase chain reaction testing. The operation focused on building a safe environment with infection prevention and control adherence and workforce sustainability. There was no leakage of SARS-CoV-2 to staff or the community and no PPE compromises requiring staff to quarantine for 14 days., Conclusion: HSIQF demonstrates the operationalisation of an effective, safe and replicable quarantine system., Implications for Public Health: Quarantine is a critical public health tool for pandemic control. The HSIQF operations may be useful to inform the establishment and management of quarantine facilities for future and current disease outbreaks., (© 2022 The Authors.)
- Published
- 2022
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