Premier Daniel Andrews Announces Elective Surgery Halt; Beds Opened for Aged Care Residents

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has announced today that all non-urgent Category 2 elective surgery in Melbourne will be paused indefinitely, to make sure hospitals have the beds, equipment and staff available if aged care residents need to be transferred.

"I cannot stand here and tell that I have confidence that staff and management across a number of private sector aged care facilities are able to provide the care that is appropriate to keep their residents safe," Mr Andrews said.

"If I could say that, I would."

Elective surgery will be suspended in Victoria for Category 2 and 3 patients in order to free up staff and hospital beds as the state continues to battle a rise in coronavirus cases, including in aged care.

"So it is with some regret, but a sense of absolute urgency that I need to announce that elective surgery other than for Category 1 and the most urgent Category 2 patients will be suspended forthwith," Premier Daniel Andrews said.

"We will do our level best to honour those booked surgeries, so scheduled surgeries, but that will not run for very long.

"If you're outside the most urgent of Category 2 or in Category 3 - although very little Category 3 surgery is being undertaken at the moment - then we will attempt to have your surgery done, but very soon, all of that surgery will stop. So only the most urgent patients will be treated.

"That is appropriate because that will free up beds and it will free up staff."

Nurses will be moved into a number of Victorian aged care facilities suffering from COVID-19 outbreaks following the suspension of some elective surgery in the state.

The decision follows a number of allegations of serious mismanagement across aged care homes battling COVID-19 clusters.

"Some of the stories we've heard, some of what's gone on in some of these settings is simply not acceptable," he said.

"It's not about blame, it's not about demarcations and having disputes about who is in charge of what. It's just about getting on and getting this done."