NSW Health Policy Change Explains Why Lane Cove Exposure Sites Have Not Been Listed Recently

By
Jacky Barker
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Last week, ITC reported two local exposures sites.  They were not on the NSW Health Department’s Exposure Sites List.

NSW Health has changed the way they are now reporting exposure sites.  They are no longer publishing an exposure site that they deem to be “low risk”.   The policy changed over the weekend and was only made public when Dr Jeremy McNulty was questioned why the number of exposure sites had dramatically reduced.

This change in procedure follows on from the NSW Department of Health’s advice that if you now test positive for COVID-19 you will be sent a text message and told to isolate and then followed up by a phone call from a contract tracer.  Previously you were phoned personally to be told if your test results were positive.  Texts are also used to notify people who are either close contacts or casual contacts.

At Tuesday 17th August 2021 11 am press conference Dr Jeremy McNaulty explained their new policy as follows:

Dr McAnulty

“We know there are quite low-risk settings that we just don’t see very much transmission at all in, and that’s such as supermarkets, shopping centres and so on.

So, we’re now deliberately prioritising in the metropolitan area venues or places where people have been in households, in other households, not their own, in workplaces, and high-risk settings such as hospitals, aged care facilities, educational settings, including childcare settings.

What we’ve learned is where the infection is most likely to spread. That’s why we’re focusing on those areas, and we’ve learned that people get lost in the detail when we put up venues that we don’t think are risk places on the website or in the media.

So, we’re really trying to focus the public’s attention on those where we believe there’s a true risk.”

Reporter

“Let’s be clear. New South Wales Health has stopped putting sites on the list of potential exposure sites, you’ve stopped putting locations that have been visited by cases because there are too many locations. When did that first happen?”

Dr McAnulty 

“We continue to, in places outside metropolitan Sydney or areas where we haven’t seen large numbers of cases, such as regional Sydney, regional parts of the state, Newcastle, Central Coast, Wollongong.

Lane Cove Local Exposure Sites

This change in the procedure may explain why two local exposure sites were not listed by NSW Health.

Coles Exposure Site

On 13th August 2021, Coles listed the following on their website:

Coles Lane Cove, NSW

Coles has been informed that a customer who has tested positive for COVID visited our Coles Lane Cove supermarket in Lane Cove NSW between 1:50 pm and 2:00 pm on Monday 9th August 2021.

In accordance with advice from NSW Health, all customers who were at the store during this time are asked to seek a COVID-19 test immediately and isolate until they receive a negative result. Additionally, NSW Health advises that if customers receive a negative test taken before 14th August 2021, they should wear a mask around others and limit their movement until receiving a second negative test result taken on 14th August 2021 or later.

Coles’ standard cleaning procedures comply with the Federal Government’s COVID-19 Hygiene Practices For Supermarkets and frequent cleaning and sanitisation has occurred in the time since the customer was last on-site.

Wades Pharmacy Exposure

On 13th August 2021 Wades Pharmacy was advised by one of their customers that they had tested positive for COVID19.

They closed immediately and the building was deep cleaned.

The customer visited the pharmacy area on:

Tuesday 10th at 5 – 5.15 pm
Thursday 12th 9.30 and 9.50 am

The customer attended the Wellness Clinic area on Wednesday 11th from 4.00 pm to 5.30 pm.

Help ITC Inform Lane Cove

If you are contacted by NSW Health that a positive COVID-19 case has visited your premises, please contact ITC.   Once we have verified details, we will list the possible exposure site on our social media pages.  Then a person who has visited your site can decide if they want to get tested and can monitor for symptoms.

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