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Australia is suffering from a blind spot that, some experts say, could cause it to lose its leading position in the pandemic.
They say heath authorities are having difficulty seeing that the science has changed and that airborne spread should now be regarded as the dominant transmission route for the virus in settings where ventilation is poor.
They urge authorities to acknowledge this boldly and make appropriate policy modifications to meet the change. As the country struggles with a makeshift collection of quarantine facilities that share or leak air, some say a first step would be to create a strict national standard to keep everyone safe, particularly in hotels.
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care released an update this week to its Preventing and Controlling Infections Standard, which.
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âFair cop,â admits the ABCâs resident coronavirus expert Norman Swan. âI probably did cause some vaccine hesitancy.â
Swan is reflecting on months of controversy over Australiaâs vaccine rollout in which he was an active and early critic, sounding the alarm over the efficacy of the AstraZeneca jab and its involvement in a very rare but dangerous clotting disorder.
The doctor is in: Norman Swan has helped millions of Australians better understand the COVID-19 pandemic.
Credit:Nic Walker
In February, federal Minister for Health Greg Hunt batted away a question about whether Swan was Australiaâs leading anti-vaxxer, and Swan says a Coalition MP he knows well texted him accusing him of being âsingle-handedly responsible for vaccine hesitancy in Australiaâ.
How Norman Swan became Australia s COVID-19 reference point theage.com.au - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theage.com.au Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.