Embarrassing blunder as South Australia's health chief apologises for wrongly claiming coronavirus-infected student broke quarantine to go on a shopping spree in Adelaide
South Australia's health chief has apologised for wrongly saying a coronavirus-infected foreign student broke quarantine to go shopping.
The man, aged in his 30s, had tested negative to coronavirus on his day-one test and wasn't told to quarantine.
He then went shopping to several locations and visited businesses around Adelaide before testing positive on day 12.
South Austalia's public health chief Nicola Spurrier pictured November 19. Professor Spurrier personally apologised to the man after wrongly saying he had breached quarantine
Large numbers of Adelaide residents were urged to get tested on Sunday after possible exposure.
SA Chief Public Health officer Nicola Spurrier told a press conference on Sunday afternoon that the man's behaviour was a serious risk to the people of South Australia and she was 'disappointed'.
However in an embarrassing development, authorities were forced to admit that the man had been blameless.
Chief public health officer Professor Nicola Spurrier personally apologised after an urgent internal SA Health review found the man was never told to quarantine.
'He has not breached quarantine and he has been fully cooperative with our contact tracing efforts which are aimed at stopping the spread of the virus any further,' she said in a statement.
Big W, Brickworks Markets, Adelaide, identified as a coronavirus hotspot on Sunday
Flinders University's Sturt campus on Sunday. Health authorities think the man caught the virus as a casual contact at the university's Intensive English Language Institute
She also personally rang the man who is now in the Pullman Hotel, Hindmarsh Square to say sorry.
SA Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Emily Kirkpatrick told a press conference on Monday afternoon that the man had been given a text message telling him to get tested and go into isolation.
When the man received a negative result, the Health Department failed to give him any further instructions, she said.
South Australians were urged to get tested after an infected foreign student visited shops. He was not told to quarantine (pictured: Adelaide supermarket queue, November 18)
'My understanding is that he has then assumed that he's then free to move about the community,' she said.
Dr Kirkpatrick said close contacts must be tested at days one and 12 and maintain a strict period of quarantine for 14 days.
However public health assessments found the student who went shopping was only classed as a 'casual contact' not a 'close contact'.
He therefore only needed to test and monitor for symptoms.
The Intensive English Language Institute at Flinders University where the man was infected
SA Deputy Chief Public Health Officer Emily Kirkpatrick said on Monday that the man had not been told to go into quarantine, and just went out after his negative test thinking he was OK
'This person did get tested on day one and 12, has done the right thing, and has assumed they can go out and about shopping and about their normal business when they were symptom free and that's what's occurred,' Dr Kirkpatrick said.
She also said the messages had been quite confusing.
SA Health had wrongly accused the man of breaching quarantine over 24 hours before the error came to light.
The health department thinks the man caught the virus as a casual contact at Flinders University's Intensive English Language Institute.
South Australia reported no new cases on Monday bringing the state's total to 561.
The Parafield cluster has infected 33 people and left more than 1300 contacts in quarantine.
Statement from SA chief public health officer Nicola Spurrier
To clarify and after reviewing Communicable Disease Control Branch processes, as a casual contact this individual was never directed to quarantine by SA Health or SAPOL and therefore has done nothing wrong.
He received communication from the Intensive English Language Institute as requested by CDCB, in which he was advised to get tested and isolate, which he did straight away.
There was no further communication from SA Health with this individual following his negative test result.
He has not breached quarantine and he has been fully cooperative with our contact tracing efforts which are aimed at stopping the spread of the virus any further.
I would personally like to apologise for this miscommunication and thank him for continuing to work with us.
Source: SA Health Facebook page