24 December 2021 – Keeping people safe
Our response to COVID-19 prioritises the safety of the people we support, as well as the continuity of our services, so that we can carry on helping people facing hardship through a time of great uncertainty.
Now, more than ever, with the opening of Queensland’s borders, we are actively responding to the coronavirus (COVID‑19) pandemic and have taken numerous steps to keep staff, carers, families and the people we support safe. We manage this through our COVID-19 Taskforce, a team consisting of Executive leaders, Senior leaders, and members of our Governance and Risk team. This taskforce is equipped to assess developments in real time, make informed decisions, initiate timely responses to challenges and make sure that our teams ‘on the ground’ have clear and accurate information.
Mercy follows government and medical expert advice to shape how we manage our operations and safely deliver services to customers and communities throughout this pandemic. Our response is guided by our Mercy Community COVID Taskforce.
Supporting our most vulnerable Queenslanders
Every day we provide vital support and essential services to some of our community’s most vulnerable people, including the elderly, people living with a disability, and families and young people doing it tough.
We will continue to do so during COVID-19 without disruption. Our priority is the safety and wellbeing of everyone, including the people we support, staff, carers, and families.
Our COVID-19 Action Plan details the comprehensive planning and preparation we have undertaken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is continually monitored and updated.
Our position on vaccinations
Mercy Community supports the government’s COVID-19 vaccine roll-out strategy. We encourage our staff (including volunteers and contractors and carers) and people we support, to make an informed decision about being vaccinated. Vaccination can save lives and higher vaccination rates can make outbreaks much less likely.
Our team’s health
The safety and wellbeing of our staff and the people we support is our highest priority.
Mercy Community is committed to ensuring that it meets its duty of care to provide a safe
environment for all people who enter, work in or reside in a Mercy Community workplace.
To help achieve this commitment, we have determined that it is a requirement, for all employees (including contractors) students, and volunteers to be fully vaccinated by 23 January 2022.
Our policy applies to both Mercy Community Services SEQ and Mercy Health and Aged Care Central Queensland and applies to all members of the Board, executive, employees, volunteers, students, contractors, sub-contractors, agents, and consultants engaged by Mercy Community.
We will also continue to follow COVID-19 safe measures as we have done throughout the pandemic including:
- regular hand washing
- maintaining physical distancing
- following strict cleaning and infection control procedures.
Our aged care facilities in Brisbane and Rockhampton
Mercy has two multi-site aged care facilities, one in Brisbane and one in Rockhampton.
In both locations, we have followed the Queensland Government’s requirements for all workers, support workers and volunteers to be vaccinated, and can confirm that we have 100% vaccination of the above workers across both facilities.
Disability Workers & Volunteers
As Mercy Community is a part of the disability sector, we must comply with the Queensland Government’s directive here too. Effective 17th December 2021, all workers, support workers and volunteers at Mercy Community must provide evidence of being double vaccinated against COVID-19 before working or volunteering with us.
All visitors will also be required to comply with these health directives.
Public health advice
We follow the expert advice of our public health authorities to help contain the spread of COVID-19 in the community and have adjusted some of our operating procedures to safeguard the health of our staff and the people we support.
To access the latest public health advice, resources and information about current cases of Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Queensland, please visit the relevant Queensland Health websites.
Sign-in processes
All Mercy Community sites have the QLD Health Check in app and sign-in processes for all visitors.
This allows us to track people who may have come into contact with the people we support and employees. It also provides a point at entry for us to reinforce site hygiene measures and allow people to make use of hand sanitiser if required.
Please follow the sign-in process from now on, even if you have not had to do so in the past. This will assist us to manage access to our sites during this time.
