Mildura hospital coming out of Code Brown emergency status

MILDURA Base Public Hospital is joining other Victorian health facilities in lifting its Code Brown emergency status.

The measure, which enables hospitals to reorganise resources, postpone non-urgent surgery and limit or cancel staff leave, was introduced by the State Government last month in Melbourne and several regions in the south of the state to help manage the high number of COVID cases caused by the Omicron variant. The Mildura hospital opted to join the Code Brown, which will be lifted from noon on Monday.

Mildura recorded 148 new cases on Monday, for a total of 689 active cases. In the Robinvale postcode, there were 11 new cases for a total of 126 active cases.

Health Minister Martin Foley said last week that the government believed it was now safe to lift the Code Brown emergency status, but that hospitals were “still going to be very, very busy”.

Melbourne public hospitals will continue to be restricted to emergency and urgent elective surgery, with the exceptions of the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and the Royal Eye and Ear Hospital.
Those two hospitals, and regional public hospitals, can resume category-two elective surgery if staff are available.

Victoria reported 7104 new COVID cases and two deaths on Monday. NSW recorded 6184 new cases and 14 deaths and Queensland recorded 3750 new cases and six deaths.