RSL LifeCare has welcomed the support of Australian Defence Force (ADF) personnel at Hugh Cunningham Gardens residential aged care home at Tura Beach
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The 15-person ADF team has been on site for a little over a week, supporting staff at the aged care home carry out clinical and non-clinical duties.
The deployment follows a commitment by the federal government to send ADF personnel to residential aged care facilities where there is a need, stabilising and supporting staff shortages and minimising aged care COVID-19 outbreaks.
Hugh Cunningham Gardens manager Jan Hume said a resident was the first positive case at the home on February 1.
"Subsequently five of our care staff became positive and went off for a furlough period.
"That impacted us negatively and quite severely quite quickly in being able to provide care."
Ms Hume said she was grateful for the quick response to a request for assistance from the ADF surge workforce.
RSL LifeCare's general manager of residential aged care, Matthew Filocamo said the ADF's efforts had been "tremendous, particularly at a critical time across the aged care sector".
"The health and safety of residents and staff across all our homes is paramount and we are continuing to do our utmost best to look after everyone," Mr Filocamo said.
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"We're grateful to the ADF and government for their support in ensuring that we continue to provide the best care possible to our residents at Hugh Cunningham Gardens, as well as delivering support to the tireless efforts of staff and peace of mind to families connected to the home."
ADF personnel are assisting in providing clinical care and COVID-19 testing to patients, as well as helping staff with cleaning, meal delivery and social interaction.
"Having the ADF team simply share a conversation and provide assurance to residents is having such a positive impact," Mr Filocamo added.
Air Force Medical technician Corporal Amy Hutchison, one of the Defence clinical staff assisting at the facility, said the 10-person team included members from the Royal Australian Air Force and Royal Australian Navy.
"Our team is providing a variety of tasks from general duties to medical support. The medical team has been helping out with the daily care of residents, and all of our team members have been interacting with the residents, which has been wonderful," said Corporal Hutchison.
"A lot of the residents have relatives in the Australian Defence Force, and it has been nice to hear about them and their family stories," Corporal Hutchison added.
