All but the most urgent elective surgery postponed across Victoria

All elective surgery, except for the most urgent cases, is now suspended in both public and private facilities in regional Victoria, as the state reports 725 new cases and 15 more deaths.

Welcome to The Medical Republic‘s COVID Catch-Up.

It’s the day’s COVID-19 news into one convenient post. Got any tips, comments or feedback? Email me at bianca@biancanogrady.com.

5 August

• All public and private elective surgery on hold across Victoria, except for urgent cases.
• Nurses show highest rates of burnout among healthcare workers in Japan, study finds.
• Latest confirmed COVID-19 infection numbers from around Australia.

• All elective surgery, except for the most urgent cases, is now suspended in both public and private facilities in regional Victoria, as the state reports 725 new cases and 15 more deaths today, including a man in his thirties.
  All patients undergoing elective surgery in regional Victoria will also now be tested for COVID-19 before surgery, extending a measure that was introduced for metropolitan Melbourne.
  At today’s press conference, Premier Dan Andrews announced that anyone who meets the criteria of ‘permitted worker’ will be able to access childcare as long as they can demonstrate that they cannot get anyone to care for their child at home. This also applies to individuals working from home.
• Nearly one-third of healthcare workers have experienced burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the highest rates among nurses, according to a study of staff at a tertiary hospital in Japan.
  Writing in JAMA Network Open, researchers reported the results of a cross-sectional online survey of 312 healthcare workers at St Luke’s International Hospital in Tokyo, which reported some the highest numbers of COVID-19 patients in the country.
  The survey found that overall prevalence of burnout was 31.4%. However, among nurses it was nearly 49% and nearly 37% of pharmacists and radiological technologists also reported burnout. Four of five individuals who experienced burnout were women, and they were significantly younger and less experienced than individuals who didn’t report burnout.
• Here are the confirmed COVID-19 infection figures around Australia to 9pm Tuesday:
  National – 18729, with 232 deaths and 483 hospitalised.
  ACT – 113
  NSW – 3809
  NT – 31
  QLD – 1085
  SA – 456
  TAS – 229
  VIC – 12,335
  WA – 669