AUGUST 25, 2020 \ STARWEEKLY.COM.AU
(Damjan Janevski) 213343_04
Dishing up kindness Trinh’s Kitchen rules when it comes to supporting the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Gisborne restaurant is cooking up a storm, providing free Vietnamese meals to those who may be doing it tough. Owner Jack Trinh said this was his way of giving back to the community. “It is quite a rough time at the moment,” he said. “People have lost their jobs and might not have enough money to afford a meal. “We are a new restaurant. We have been open for nearly two years so I thought we should give back to the community.” Additional meals can be purchased for $5, with the money being donated to the Gisborne Foodbank. Mr Trinh said customers who didn’t need the free meal were still donating money. “One customer donated $20 to the bill and I put it aside to give to the Gisborne Foodbank,” he said. “We also do free delivery before 4pm so if people are hesitant to come, we can do contactless delivery so it is safe.” Details: 5428 8866 Jessica Micallef
JACK TRINH
Centre’s covid warning By Jessica Micallef Tara Chandrasegran is warning staf at aged care facilities that no home is safe from the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. New Gisborne’s Warrina Aged Care was locked down on August 14 and a 24-hour action plan implemented ater a staf member tested positive to coronavirus. Ms Chandrasegran, the centre’s nursing director, said she never thought the plan would be needed. “Don’t think it won’t happen to you.
“We followed every direction given to us … to ensure we stopped the spread of infection and to keep our residents safe,” she said. “We have all been wearing masks and face shields well before this was a requirement. “Our staf were inundated with education around infection control, COVID-19, and correct use of personal protective equipment for months to ensure they were ready should we be required to ight the COVID-19 battle. “We also provided education to our residents on hand hygiene and information around what might happen should COVID-19 get into our
home.” Ms Chandrasegran said the 24-hour action plan is an hour-by-hour guide on what steps to take following a positive case. She said the 24 to 48 hours ater the positive case was known were critical to ensure the risk of infection to residents was minimised. Staf who worked with the infected employee were stood down and a call went out to other staf members to provide care for residents. Residents and staf underwent a further two rounds of testing last week, with all results coming back negative. Ms Chandrasegran said the aged care’s
readiness and quick-thinking staf was what saved the home from being inundated with multiple virus victims. “Warrina dodged a massive bullet. Not because we were lucky but because we were prepared,” she said. “Be prepared, be ready and value your staf because they are true warriors. “Personal protective equipment is your amour, your staf are your soldiers and COVID-19 is our battle.” ■ Message
from front line: Page 8
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