Care Workers Face Challenges During Lockdown

Everyday during lock down, home care workers across Cowra continue to provide services to the most vulnerable people within our community. Being an essential worker during stay at home orders can be nerve racking as they expose themselves to the community without the luxury of working from home. Home care companies have had to quickly adapt during lockdowns, constantly adjusting and jumping hurdles.

The cases erupting in Cowra have put a strain on care services with large numbers of staff members needing to be tested and isolated in one foul swoop, pushing teams to breaking point. A Cowra service coordinator expressed how hard the impact was to take last week.

“It is difficult for staff to understand the contact status and how long they need to be isolated. The delays in getting test results has further impacted the isolation period, even when they have been flagged as essential workers.”

The fear of unvaccinated workers is starting to create issues of its own. “Clients are beginning to request only vaccinated workers, but as it’s not mandatory yet companies don’t have that information and if we did, due to privacy we cannot disclose it to them, our hands are tied.”

A local care worker spoke about the personal battles of being an essential worker with a young family.

“The biggest impact for me is attending the vulnerable while risking my family’s health.”

“It’s the fear of getting home each day and finding out you have been to an exposure site while shopping for our clients, that scares me the most” said another worker.

The delay in test results and unclear information on close and casual contacts is creating constant issues for the industry. While the worry of being exposed is evident, it’s their compassion that drives the care workers to keep going.

“We love what we do and we care about our clients, some of whom have no family support. That’s why we go out there every day and push on!”