3 September
Benetas was advised on the evening of Wednesday 1 September 2021 that an employee had tested positive to COVID-19. This employee had not attended any Benetas aged care homes while infectious. They did however attend the Support Office site in Hawthorn East on Monday 30 August. This site alone has been determined by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) as being a Tier One exposure site.

Upon being advised of the positive result, Benetas contacted all employees deemed to be close contacts and directed them to immediately get tested and isolate. Support Office has also been closed for a deep and thorough cleaning.

Our thoughts are with the infected employee at this time. The wellbeing of everyone in our community is of our utmost concern.

2 September
On Wednesday 1 September, the Premier of Victoria announced an extension to the lockdown across Victoria. The current restrictions in Greater Melbourne and regional Victoria are expected to continue until at least 23 September when it is projected that Victoria will reach a vaccination rate of 70% . We urge everyone to play their part for the whole community, follow the lockdown guidelines and get vaccinated. This is the best way to slow the rise in case numbers, protect our community and ultimately reduce admissions to hospitals.

To view the latest announcements visit http://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/ and also https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/slowing-spread-and-keeping-our-state-safe

23 August 2021
The Victorian Premier advised on 21 August, that the lockdown conditions in Greater Melbourne would be extended to include the whole of Victoria until Thursday 2 September, 11:59pm. Regional Victorians are now subject to additional restrictions such as work permits for permitted workers, travel restrictions as well as wearing masks indoors and outdoors. It’s imperative that all Victorians work together to follow these guidelines in the interest of protecting the health of the whole community against the highly infectious Delta strain of coronavirus (Covid-19). To View the latest announcements visit http://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/ and also https://www.premier.vic.gov.au/lockdown-across-regional-victoria-keep-us-safe

17 August 2021
The Victorian Premier has advised of a further two week extension to the current lockdown for greater Melbourne, until Thursday 2 September, 11:59pm. There have been additional restrictions introduced for this period including a stay at home curfew, work permits for permitted workers as well as all the previous restrictions. It’s imperative that Melburnians work together and follow these guidelines in the interest of protecting public health against the highly infectious Delta strain of coronavirus (Covid-19).

12 August 2021
The Victorian Premier has advised that there is a seven day extension to the current lockdown for greater Melbourne, until Thursday 19 August, 11:59pm. Regional Victoria has returned to the previous level of restrictions, however Greater Melbourne has been directed to continue the lockdown in response to the current outbreak of a highly infectious strain of coronavirus (Covid-19).

Covid-19 Preparedness
Benetas has stringent procedures in place to ensure we are ready to face any risk of an outbreak of Covid-19 from the community. (repetitive)We wholeheartedly support the Government mandate for aged care employees to be vaccinated and in the lead up to the 17 September, we are on our way to meeting the deadline with 89% of current Benetas residential aged care employees across our 14 sites having had at least one dose (as at 2 Sept.). Furthermore we conduct weekly asymptomatic Covid-19 testing of all employees in our metropolitan homes and fortnightly testing of employees in our regional homes.

We remain diligent in our infection prevention and control measures. We are confident that we are doing all we can to manage this current situation in our community and would like to thank all of clients, residents, families and representatives for their continued support.

Benetas greatly welcomes the Australian Government’s rollout of the COVID-19 Vaccination Program for all aged care residents, employees and volunteers as a matter of priority. You can read more about the roll out of the vaccine across our homes and services.

Benetas Board Director, Dr Michael Murray AM, is Director of Geriatric Medicine and his wife, Dr Mary O’Reilly, is Deputy Chief Medical Officer at Austin Health. In this video, they answer questions we’ve been receiving from employees, residents, clients and families about the COVID-19 vaccination program.

In their second video, Dr Michael Murray AM and Dr Mary O’Reilly address the concerns we have been hearing about the very slim potential side effect of blood clots after having the

Older Australians have access to a dedicated free call service to support the mental health of those affected by the spread of COVID-19. The phone line is staffed by advisers who can offer practical help and advice and is a partnership between OPAN, COTA and National Seniors Australia.

Call 1800 171 866 from Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6pm (except public holidays).

The Centre for Cultural Diversity in Ageing, supported by Benetas, has also launched the Multilingual Older Persons COVID-19 Support Line.

The support line is funded by the Australian Department of Health, and is an Australia-wide initiative that provides in-language information and support associated with COVID-19, and referrals to appropriate services and programs for older Australians from culturally diverse backgrounds.

The support line is available in Arabic, Cantonese, Greek, Italian, Mandarin and Vietnamese. All calls are free, 2:00pm - 5:00pm (Melbourne time) Monday to Fridays (except public holidays).

If you have any further questions or feedback please contact Covid19Enquiries@benetas.com.au.