Our thoughts are with all of our Members, Helpers and Five Good Friends staff who live in Greater Sydney. A lockdown is difficult and we will continue working hard to maintain your services and the safety and wellbeing of everyone. You can find more information about the lockdown on the NSW government coronavirus website.
What does this mean for your services?
Visits can continue during the lockdown period. Helpers who live and work in Greater Sydney (including the Blue Mountains, Central Coast, Wollongong and Shellharbour) must follow scenario 2B in the Standard Operating Procedure including wearing a mask, gloves and apron for all visits.
Helpers who live and work in NSW outside of Greater Sydney must follow scenario 2C in the Standard Operating Procedure including wearing a mask for all visits. Please note - NSW Health is also urging Members to wear a mask as well during services.
Rescheduling or cancelling services
We continue to urge all Helpers and Five Good Friends team members to be vigilant in their management of COVID-19 and any symptoms. This includes cancelling visits if they have any concerns. If your Helper does need to cancel a visit at short notice we would be grateful for your understanding. We will work very hard to ensure your services continue with minimal disruption.
If you want to make a change to your visits you can discuss this directly with your Helpers. If you require further assistance please contact our Member Services Team on 1300 787 581 and select Option 1.
New requirement for COVID-19 testing for Helpers
A new Health Direction was issued by the NSW Government requiring Helpers:
- who reside in Fairfield LGA and work outside of Fairfield LGA to have a COVID-19 test every 72 hours and to be able to present evidence of this to Five Good Friends or a police officer if stopped.
- who reside in Greater Sydney and work outside of these LGA areas to have a COVID-19 test every 7 days and be able to present evidence of this to Five Good Friends or a police officer if stopped.
Please be assured that we are working with the affected Helpers to ensure they meet these testing requirements and provide evidence of this to Five Good Friends.
Family and friends unable to visit
At Five Good Friends we believe in the power and importance of friendships. We aim for our support to not only be there for our Members but also for those close to them that provide care. COVID-19 can make it more difficult to spend time with those we love. In addition to the direct care and services we provide into the home we can also offer a Wellbeing Phone Call service.
This service is a scheduled phone call made to our Members to check on their wellbeing, see how they are going, and even just have a good chat (we all need that sometimes). We can also identify if there is any other support that is required. As part of the service the team will also complete a Wellness Survey which will identify and raise any concerns to the Care Manager for follow up if required.
If as a carer or a Member you feel this service could benefit, you can contact our Member Services Team on 1300 787 591, Option #1 for more information. We are here to help.
Resources available to you
The Older Persons Advocacy Network (OPAN) has an independent, free service to support older people and their family members during COVID-19. Families can call OPAN on 1800 700 600 if they would like to talk with someone about the COVID-19 situation and its impact, or if worried about a loved one and need to talk to someone. OPAN has also provided some information webinars which may be of interest to you:
COVID-19 Safe Work Practices
We continue to use and regularly update our COVID-19 Safe Work Practices and Standard Operating Procedure that are informed by Commonwealth and State Departments of Health. These documents provide guidance on how to safely manage and deliver services. We have sent communications to all affected Helpers advising them on key updates.
Public exposure sites
The NSW Government's coronavirus website provide a list of all current public exposure sites and the health advice to be followed if you were in attendance during the identified time period. This information can be found here.
Testing remains a priority for everyone
If you have symptoms of COVID-19 such as a cough, fever, sore throat, shortness of breath or runny nose, chills or sweat, even if these are mild, you should get tested for COVID-19 as soon as possible. You can also contact the Coronavirus Hotline on 1800 675 398 for advice.
To arrange testing you can visit a COVID-19 testing clinic in your area. Please advise us and your Helper if you are going to be tested.
Vaccination
Commonwealth and State health departments as well as expert health advisors such as the Australian Health Protection Principal Committee (AHPPC) strongly encourage vaccination. To ensure the safety and wellbeing of our Members, Helpers, staff and the community Five Good Friends is following this advice by recommending vaccination. We understand there may be reasons (e.g. medical) that prevent vaccination.
There are a number of ways you can get your COVID-19 vaccine which are outlined on the Department of Health's website:
If you need assistance booking or attending your vaccination appointment, please contact your Care Team via details in the App or the Member Services Team on 1300 787 581 and select Option 1.
We shared this information by email as it is the quickest way we can reach as many Five Good Friends Members as possible. We would be grateful if you shared this information to assist in its distribution.
We are also grateful you have chosen Five Good Friends. We will continue to diligently monitor the COVID-19 situation and do our best to provide you safe, flexible, kind and consistent help and support.
Kind regards,
William Garton
Head of Quality and Programme Development
Five Good Friends
