To all staff,
Our Response to COVID-19 (Coronavirus)
The health and wellbeing of our students, staff at ALACC is our utmost priority.
In order to provide a healthy and safe education environment, we greatly appreciate I respectfully ask that all staff members follow below practices:
The best defence in preventing the spread of illness is:
1. Scrupulous hand washing
- Wash your hands frequently with soap and water, including before and after eating and conducting lectures.
- Use the hand dryer to dry your hands, or paper towel in the kitchen.
- Use hand sanitiser
- Remind our student community the importance of washing hands regularly, and having front of mind, their own personal hygiene for the protection of themselves and others.
2. Cleaning
- Proactive and preventative approach to protect the community against the spread of Coronavirus in our College
- Daily cleaning of commonly handled surfaces such as door knobs, handles, pens, computers, student desks, chairs, tables, lab equipment, manikins, first aid equipment, projector, laptops, at reception, lounge room, computer lab, classrooms, nursing lab, bathrooms, offices, etc
3. Reporting and advising students and staff
- Suspicion of flu-like symptoms to leave the College and visit their doctor.
- Write an incident report so we can track down and trace incidents of COVID-19 if needed.
4. Self-Isolation:
- If living with a person returning from overseas to quarantine in their own home for 14 days and provide a medical certificate of clearance.
- If you are part of College where cases of possible exposure are being established, please consider not coming into the College until you have confirmation of your level of exposure and required actions.
- If you have been confirmed as being in close contact with someone who has coronavirus disease (COVID-19) please stay at home (self-quarantine) for the 14-day isolation period prior to returning to classes. Close contact is defined as someone who has been face to face for at least 15 minutes or been in the same closed space for at least two hours with
someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 when that person was infectious. - Stay home if you or students are feeling unwell. Symptoms can range from mild to severe and can last from 2 to 14 days.
- If you or student have travelled, or have been exposed to someone that has travelled to an affected area, please adhere to the governments advice and wait 14 days before coming back to class.
5. Information on COVID-19
Continue to stay up to date with the daily news and follow the official directives from both the National and State Health Departments.
For more information on Coronavirus visit Health.gov.au
Call the hotline on the Coronavirus Health Information Line on 1800 020 080
Coronavirus (COVID-19) health alert
- What is coronavirus (COVID-19)
- Symptoms
- Who is at risk
- How it spreads
- Prevention
- Diagnosis
- Treatment
- Resources
- Support services
- Health sector
- What we are doing
6. Avoid contact rule –
- Trainers and nurse educators implement an ‘avoid contact rule’ in class.
- In some cases, where the safety of our students requires necessary hand contact support, then additional hygiene and sanitation will be implemented.
- Please avoid contact with other students and staff by giving a wave or smile rather than hugging or high fiving friends before, during, and after classes.
- Staff and students to practise good respiratory hygiene, inclusive of covering your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing, coughing into a flexed elbow, disposing of tissues and washing your hands immediately rigorously (for at least 20 seconds) with soap or alcohol-based rubs.
- Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
7. At this time there are no directives
from either our State or National Departments of Health to advise that we stop classes or shut down our College. However, we continue to monitor this status closely and should this change we will advise accordingly.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation as we do our best to circumnavigate these difficult times.
Be on the alert and keep me informed.
Do not panic, let common-sense prevail.
Cheers,
Dr Janet Lawrence
CEO/Director of Studies