By Molly Magennis
With a Pandemic Code Brown implemented across all metro and major regional hospitals this week, Western Health has assured patients it is well prepared.
The Victorian government announced the Code Brown on January 18, amid staff shortages and increased COVID hospitalisations due to the spread of Omicron.
In a statement on its Facebook page, Western Health said it did not anticipate major changes to the delivery of key services.
“The Pandemic Code Brown is intended to ease the burden on health services by streamlining emergency management systems when there is an influx of patients over a short period of time,” the post said.
“We’d like to take this opportunity to reassure our patients and the wider community that while Omicron has presented challenges, Western Health is well prepared and we are monitoring the situation closely so we can respond as needed.
“We would like to thank our staff for the ongoing support and agility they have shown over such an extended period of time and continuing to provide the best possible care to our patients and the community.”
The Pandemic Code Brown is expected to last four to six weeks, with health officials monitoring the situation to determine when it’s safe to begin winding down precautions.
Acting health minister James Merlino said Code Brown was the best way to ensure hospitals can continue to safely care for people in need.
“Our health services will have to make some hard decisions over the next few weeks to manage increasing demand and I thank every single one of them for making the tough calls necessary to help as many Victorians as they can.”
