Healthcare
Analysis
Coronavirus pandemic
Sitting, waiting, wishing: How WA wound up shutting its doors to COVID, and the world, again
The story of how WA went from not worrying about Omicron to putting its head back under the doona in the space of a month.
- by Peter de Kruijff
Latest
Victoria records 18,167 new cases and 20 deaths as GPs face “chaotic” scenes
There are now 1096 people in hospital with the virus in Victoria, with 34 people on a ventilator and 121 are in intensive care.
- by Ashleigh McMillan
WA Premier Mark McGowan delays border reopening, targets triple dose vaccination rate of 80%
Mark McGowan has delayed the state’s reopening over fears lagging booster vaccination rates will cause the Omicron variant to run rampant in the community.
- by Heather McNeill
Exclusive
Coronavirus pandemic
RPA department head lashes ‘politically-driven’ management of crisis
In an internal video to staff, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital executive clinical director Professor Paul Torzillo has called out the decisions being made by state and federal governments.
- by Lucy Carroll and Mary Ward
Opinion
Hospitals
Code brown emergency forces exhausted hospital staff back to work
Presentation numbers are up, staff numbers are down. There is no cavalry to come to the rescue; there are no benched players waiting to be tapped onto the court.
- by Roderick McRae and Gavin Wayne
After his ICU shift, ‘street medic’ Daniel helps the city’s homeless
Over the past 18 months, the Street Side Medics team has grown to 250 GPs, nurses, doctors and allied health professionals, who visit homelessness services each week.
- by Mary Ward
Nurses want ADF called in to help ease ‘code brown’ hospital crisis
Victoria’s nurses’ union says hospitals need urgent military support after the government declared a code brown emergency to relieve a health system buckling under the Omicron wave.
- by Melissa Cunningham and Timna Jacks
Updated
Coronavirus pandemic
Curtin University joins exposure site list as WA Omicron cluster grows with two new cases
The cases are linked to the current Omicron outbreak in Perth with the possible transmission of the virus to people who visited three massage parlours still a major concern for health authorities.
- by Peter de Kruijff
Perth COVID-positive business owner fears self-isolation with four kids could go on for many weeks
Fleur McKinlay runs Soul Garden holistic beauty salon in Mundaring but had to close the shop on Saturday after she had a client who was infectious with Omicron.
- by Peter de Kruijff
Updated
Coronavirus pandemic
One person with COVID-19 in hospital as WA exposure site list grows
Exposure sites have been added from Midland to Margaret River and health professional associations are calling for immediate social restrictions to slow down spread of the virus.
- by Peter de Kruijff and Holly Thompson
Long COVID: Hit to immune system lingers for months after infection
Researchers have for the first time found elevated inflammation levels in unvaccinated people who caught the virus during the state’s first wave, indicating abnormalities in the immune system persist at least eight months after recovery.
- by Lucy Carroll