Policy Infection Control Policy

[Dept. Health]

Department of Health
Infection Control Policy

Proper infection control is crucial to the Department of Health's goals to promote the wellbeing of the citizens of Redmont. This policy outlines the procedures used to mitigate the impacts of contagious diseases.​

INFECTION CONTROL​

Employees of the department SHOULD minimise the spread of contagious diseases by:

• Communicating clearly about contagious patients and personal transmission risk to others.
• Maintaining a safe distance from others.
• Promptly self-administering treatments for contagious diseases.
• Following the Infection Control Policy and its procedures.

The current maximum transmission radius is three blocks. Employees SHOULD keep this in mind when maintaining safe distances.

FORCED TREATMENT
Department of Health employees are empowered by statute to forcibly treat individuals who have a contagious disease when they are in a location that could reasonably lead to its spread. This power MUST be used sparingly and only as a measure of infection control, so as not to unnecessarily infringe on the rights of citizens.

An out-of-pocket payment MUST NOT be collected for forced treatment.

This power SHOULD be exercised by a member of senior leadership, and any use of it MUST be reported to the Secretary or Deputy with supporting evidence.

OUTBREAK PROCEDURE​

An outbreak is a sudden increase in contagious diseases on the server.

An outbreak is considered an epidemic when three or more patients have the same contagious disease, at the same time, in the same area.

An outbreak is considered a pandemic when five or more patients contract the same contagious disease and it affects 50% or more of the online player-count.

When an outbreak begins, the Secretary, Deputy Secretary, and Medical Specialist team MUST be notified in the Discord server.

COMMUNICATION
During an outbreak, communication is important for coordinating the online medical team and guiding the public.

The /doh channel SHOULD only be used for coordination between members of the online team. Patients SHOULD NOT be claimed through /doh during an outbreak.

Infected citizens SHOULD be directed to queue in front of the monitor at Reveille Main Hospital. They SHOULD be instructed to only click the terminal when a doctor is present at the desk.

Communication with patients SHOULD use /murmur, as the yellow text is clearer during high-volume chat.

TEAMWORK
The most senior online employee is responsibly for leading the team through an outbreak. If none of the senior leadership (Secretary, Deputy Secretary Medical Specialist Team) are not online , the first doctor to attend the outbreak SHOULD take on this responsibility.

The online team of doctors SHOULD be divided between treatment and cure-crafting roles as needed. The division of labour during an outbreak MUST be reported to the Secretary or Deputy afterwards so cure-crafting employees can be remunerated fairly.

TREATMENT
When there are doctors stationed in the cure room, needed treatments MUST be requested through /doh. Crafted cures should then be left somewhere treating doctors can collect them while maintaining a safe distance e.g. dropped on the floor by the lift or placed in a barrel in the isolation floor cure room.

The isolation floor cure room has the materials and reserve chests for the treatments for contagious diseases.

The main cure room SHOULD have no more than two doctors inside at once and the isolation floor cure room SHOULD have no more than one doctor inside at a time. Employees SHOULD wait before entering a cure room if it is at capacity.

The risk of infection while treating patients means doctors MUST treat themselves first with left-click before treating the patient with right-click. This requires two cures to perform, one for the doctor and one for the patient. This MUST be done in quick succession to prevent reinfection, and it can be difficult to learn. Doctors SHOULD ask for help if they cannot perform this procedure correctly.

Doctors MUST NOT accept out-of-pocket payments during an outbreak nor claim /bulkbill payments for self administered treatments.

ISOLATION PROCEDURE​

The isolation procedure SHOULD be followed for all cases of contagious diseases, not just during an outbreak.

When a patient with a suspected contagious disease presents at a DoH facility, they SHOULD be escorted promptly to a treatment room as far from the lobby area as possible.

Treatment rooms either side of a patient with a suspected or confirmed contagious disease MUST be left vacant to prevent the spread of disease to other patients.

If there is no space to adequately isolate the patients using standard treatment rooms or there is an on-going outbreak, the isolation level at Reveille Main Hospital MUST be used.

Patients MUST be assigned to empty isolation rooms furthest from the entrance lift first. This is to minimise cross contamination between treated and untreated patients.

Patients MUST sit still on the medical bed and wait for treatment to avoid transmission.

The Infection Control Policy is updated and enforced at the discretion of the Secretary. Any doubts, concerns or requests may be raised directly with the Secretary or Deputy Secretary.

Stay healthy!
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