Infection control (including PPE)

As part of the National COVID-19 Health Management Plan for 2023, the Australian Government has advised that the distribution of PPE through the Living with COVID measure has now ceased (as of 31 December 2022). There will be no further extensions and no deliveries will be made after this date.

Further information about the PPE distribution measures for ACCHOs will be provided at a later date.

Useful PPE resources  

• RACGP:
  • Infection prevention and control guidelines for general practices and other office-based and community-based practices
  • Optimising the use of personal protective equipment in general practice during COVID-19
• Australian Government:
  • Personal protective equipment (PPE) for the health workforce resources
  • PPE Buyers Guide       
• Queensland Health:
  • Infection prevention and control guidance (including PPE advice)
  • Guidance on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health care workers in the context of COVID-19 

NQPHN funded APNA and subject matter expert Megan Reilly to deliver webinars for all general practices and pharmacies with information on how to apply infection prevention control in practices/pharmacies and keep the doors open. 

View the third and final webinar, which mirrors the content in the previous two webinars delivered, and the Infection prevention and control refresher below.

The following documents from the webinars are also useful: 

• Webinar overview – with links to the webinar recordings on YouTube 
• PDF slides 
• Q&A document – evidence-based answers supplied by APNA's subject matter expert.

Other infection control resources

The following resources are available to assist with the management of infection control: 

• PPE burn rate calculators can help health service organisations to plan and optimise the use of PPE for response to COVID-19:

  • CDC PPE Burn Rate Calculator

  • PPE Burn Rate Calculator Tutorial

  • COVID Staffing Project Daily PPE Calculator

• COVID-19 Infection Control Online Training Module   
• Guidance on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) for health care workers in the context of COVID-19 (Australian Government Department of Health) 
• Work permissions and restrictions framework for workers in healthcare settings (Australian Government Department of Health) – includes appropriate PPE guidance 
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) guidance for Queensland clinicians (Queensland Health) – includes videos on donning and doffing of PPE. 
• Respiratory and Eye Protection Decision Aid 
• Australian guidelines for SARS-CoV-2 infection prevention and control of COVID-19 in healthcare workers 
• A 30 minutes Australian Government COVID-19 infection control online training for health care workers in all settings is available here. It covers the fundamentals of infection prevention and control for COVID-19. 

For more information, read the latest CDNA National guidelines. 

For the latest clinical practice guidelines in the North Queensland region, please refer to HealthPathways. 

Other useful links 

• RACGP Infection prevention and control guidelines
• RACGP Infection control principles for consulting with suspected cases for COVID-19  
• RACGP – COVID-19 infection-control principles 
• How you can help keep Queensland COVID safe   
• RACGP Patient Alert Posters

Fit testing of P2/N95 masks

Specifically for GPs who are prepared and able to undertake specimen collection in their surgeries. P2/N95 respirators are only required for aerosol generating procedures. 

The Queensland Health Fit Testing of Particulate Filtration Respirators (PFR or P2/N95 respirators) in respiratory protection programs Guidance Document (Fit Testing Document) has been developed to provide guidance and recommendations for decision-makers and healthcare workers (HCWs) in Queensland to support the safe and practical integration of fit testing into respiratory protection programs. 

The following online resources are also available about P2/N95 mask fit checking: 

• Queensland Health P2/N95 mask fit checking: Including a link to a powerpoint presentation on how to perform a fit check. 
• Further information for health professionals about fit-testing and fit-checking of P2/N95 masks and the use of PPE equipment can be found here. 
• Resp-Fit has a comprehensive Frequently Asked Questions resource. 

PPE Buyers Guide

The Australian Government Department of Industry and Science Energies and Resources (DISER) have collated some helpful information to assist organisations with confidence in buying PPE from new suppliers including: 

• what to look for when buying PPE 

• how PPE is regulated/certified 

• keeping your workplace safe 

• knowing your consumer rights and protecting yourself from fraud 

• links to National and State portals to help connect buyers and sellers of PPE. 

Download the PPE Buyers Guide.  

What's On Offer website

For a comprehensive list of readily available commercial sources of PPE (including surgical face masks, P2/N95 masks, eye and face protection, gowns and more) refer to the Queensland Government’s What’s on Offer website that has been designed to connect buyers with suppliers.