More than 200 people forced to quarantine at facilities in Australia have been encouraged to undergo tests for HIV and other blood-transmitted diseases after authorities there confessed to using the same testing devices on multiple people.
Victorian health agency, Safer Care Victoria, in a statement on Monday said it would be reaching out to at least 243 people, who received a blood glucose level test between March 29 and August 20 while staying at one of the nation’s quarantine hotels.
At the start of the global pandemic, Australia closed its borders to visitors and required all returning travelers to pay $2,110 to spend two weeks in a state quarantine facility.
The testing devices, which draw blood from a patient’s finger with a single prick, can be used repeatedly, but it must be on the same person. The needles can be changed between use, but the body of the devices can still retain microscopic amounts of blood.
The process is typically used to test glucose levels in diabetes patients, but “may also be used for pregnant women, people who fainted or people who are generally unwell,” according to health officials.
Safer Care Victoria said that while there is no risk of COVID-19 spread — as the disease is not transmitted by blood — there is a risk of cross-contamination due to the improper use of equipment and infection with blood borne viruses, like hepatitis B and C and HIV.
“The health of past quarantine residents is our immediate concern, so arranging screening for them is our absolute priority. The clinical risk is low. But if you are at all worried you had this test – and we have not contacted you yet — please call us,” said Safer Care deputy CEO Ann Maree Keenan in a press release.
“Right now, we won’t be able to answer the many questions people will have about how this happened. Be assured that Safer Care Victoria is conducting a full review into how and why this device came to be in use.”
Victoria, Australia’s coronavirus hotspot, has reported more than 20,000 infections, including over 800 deaths. Nationwide, there have been more than 27,400 cases and 905 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University.
