Aged care facilities welcome back visitors

Blue wave aged care

Residents at local aged care facilities have been able to start reuniting with friends and family due to the easing of COVID-19 restrictions from Monday, October 11.

NSW Health advised that residents were permitted to have two visitors per day provided they were aged 12 years and over and have received a second dose of a COVID vaccine at least 14 days prior to their visit.

There is an exception for up to two unvaccinated people to visit a resident for an end-of-life visit.

They must always wear a surgical mask and the visit must be solely inside the resident’s room.

NSW Health has recommended that facilities should consider Rapid Antigen Testing (RAT) if readily available for visitors attending an end-of-life visit.

People who are providing a service to the resident including a health service or professional or other service are not included as part of the visitor limitations.

All visitors must wear a surgical mask while visiting indoors.

BlueWave Living said that visits must occur in the resident’s private bedroom, or other area as designated by BlueWave staff.

“We request that visitors do not to interact with other residents in BlueWave, other than whom they are visiting,” BlueWave Living said.

“Our opening hours for visits will be from 10am to 4pm daily.”

NSW Health have also said aged care residents can leave the facility and attend family gatherings or for other reasons but must abide by the current health advice.

Facilities must ensure that residents are provided with appropriate PPE and infection control advice if they leave the facility.

If a person cannot wear a face mask because of a disability, physical or mental health illness or condition, they must carry either: a medical certificate or letter signed by a registered health practitioner (such as a doctor) or a registered NDIS provider or a statutory declaration.

“Our team are thrilled that residents, after so many months in lockdown, can finally begin to receive visitors again,” Peninsula Villages said in a social media statement.

“While we navigate the next few weeks and anticipate there may be changes to visitation rules, these are the key regulations from NSW Health as they currently apply to Peninsula Villages.

“We want nothing more than to see families and friends reunited again as quickly as possible and hope you understand the steps, we need to take to ensure we bring people together as safely as possible.”

Visiting hours at Peninsula Villages are strictly 9-4pm Monday to Friday, and 9-2pm Saturday and Sunday.

All visitors must enter via the main reception area in PPH and must sign in using the QR code, produce a COVID-19 vaccination certificate, and not have travelled outside of the Greater Sydney area.

All visitors must wear a surgical mask while visiting indoors.

Apart from end-of-life visits, visits may be permitted in either the resident’s room or an outside area but not in any inside communal areas.

There is an exception for up to two unvaccinated people to visit a resident for an end-of-life visit which must be approved by the Facility Manager prior to the visit.

They must always wear a surgical mask and the visit must be solely inside the resident’s room.

More information about visiting restrictions can be found on Bluewave Living and Peninsula Village’s websites respectively.

Maisy Rae