Modelling Suggests Rapid Surge In SA COVID-19 Hospitalisations

Wearing masks in schools will be encouraged but not mandated in South Australia, despite new modelling showing the state is facing an increase in COVID-19 hospitalisations.

The Department of Education will send a letter to schools and parents encouraging mask use when students return to class next Monday rather than mandating their use – similar to what the Victorian Government implemented.

“That’s (masks in schools) not going to be a mandated situation like we’ve had previously, but it will certainly be encouraged,” Health Minister Chris Picton said.

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There have also been no changes made to current isolation rules some elective surgeries will continue despite the modelling suggesting an excess of 400 hospitalisations, and 6,000 daily cases.

Non-urgent and overnight admissions for elective surgeries in metropolitan hospitals will however be halted.

Picton said the state was seeing an average upward increase in terms of hospitalisations, but that number also included people who were in hospital for other health reasons but had also contracted COVID-19 concurrently.

“There will be no stopping of private, same-day, paediatric, country or urgent elective surgery,” he said.

“This will be reviewed on a weekly basis over the next four weeks. We’ve established a task force of surgeons to work out how we can plan elective surgery better.

Today, SA recorded 4,172 COVID-19 cases, bringing the active cases total to 29,845.

There are currently 282 people in hospital, with 11 of those in ICU and one on a ventilator.

"These numbers do bounce around — as people would be familiar from day to day — but we are seeing an average upwards trajectory in terms of hospitalisations at the moment,” Picton said.

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