Elective surgery resumes

Epworth HealthCare resumed some additional non-urgent elective surgery from Monday, 27 April 2020.

At the request of the Federal government, most cases of elective surgery were paused last month to ensure there was capacity in both private and public hospitals, as part of the nation-wide response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our doctors continue to prioritise cases according to clinical needs in accordance with the latest guidelines.

Epworth Group Chief Executive Dr Lachlan Henderson thanked patients for their understanding while waiting for surgery to resume.

“We’re really pleased we can again resume some categories of elective surgery and provide care for our private patients who have been waiting,” Dr. Henderson said.

“We know it’s been tough for some of our patients who had their surgery delayed.”

Extra steps continue to be in place to keep Epworth patients, staff and doctors safe, including temperature screening of patients and visitors before they enter our hospitals and restricting visitor access.

“Everyone entering our hospitals can have confidence that we’ve put the necessary processes in place to keep everyone safe,’ Dr Henderson said.

Over the last four weeks Epworth staff and doctors have undertaken extra training in the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), with designated staff known as “PPE spotters” working across all sites to ensure PPE is correctly used when required.