Healthcare workers who work in a low disease prevalence area and become close contact with a confirmed case will be required to self-quarantine at home for 10 days.
Daily symptoms checking and strict COVID safe measures will be conducted before they are allowed to return to work.
And those workers must be tested if they develop symptoms, says Ministry of Health and Medical Services permanent secretary Dr James Fong.
“However, if the healthcare worker is working in a high disease prevalence area where essential health services are at risk of being severely debilitated by a high number of healthcare workers having to quarantine or isolate, the healthcare worker will be required to return to duty at their respective health facility with strict adherence to COVID safe measures and infection prevention and control measures, undergo regular symptoms monitoring while at work, and have daily rapid antigen testing before the start of the shift,” Dr Fong said.
“They are to immediately stand down from duties and isolate if they develop symptoms or return a positive test.”
For the general public, Dr Fong said a strict 10 days quarantine period would apply to all individuals who were close contacts of a positive case.
“This is the same quarantine strategy used for the mitigation phase in the Central Division and the Western Division during the second wave, and so should be familiar with members of the general public.”
