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A TEMPORARY hold on visitors at Mallee Track Health and Community Service (MTHCS) Ouyen facilities, has been lifted. Visits were suspended at Ouyen Aged Care and Pattinson House late last week due to a COVID-19 exposure, but both facilities reopened for visitors on Monday (January 24) 2022 under strict protocols, including a requirement for visitors to phone ahead.

Kids showing the way. We're happy to see so many families booking in for children's COVID-19 vaccination. Although children and young people are less likely to develop severe symptoms, some do get very unwell. Vaccination can protect kids and help prevent them transmitting the virus to family members, particularly older family members.

A local team to provide long-term mental health support for communities will be complete when Mallee Track Health and Community Service (MTHCS) recruits a Mental Health Clinician in the coming weeks. The Mental Health Clinician will work across the MTHCS catchment and within the Ouyen, Murrayville and Manangatang P12 colleges.

Keep doing the things that keep us safe. A lot has changed since our last update before Christmas - COVID-19 is now present in our Mallee Track communities, and the Omicron variant is extremely infectious. As Government restrictions change and evolve, the best protection for our families and communities is to go back to what we know works:

Volunteers Renae and Peter have been busy wrapping gifts and putting together food hampers to be delivered to local households as part of the Mallee Track Annual Community Christmas Appeal. The appeal is again being coordinated by MTHCS Ouyen Neighbourhood House in partnership with the Murrayville Neighbourhood House, Victoria Police, St Vincent de Paul Society and local schools.

Spotlight on men's health. Ambulance Victoria paramedics Joe, Jacob and Brodie revived an important conversation around men’s health last month. As Team Mallee, the men took up the Movember challenge and grew moustaches to support and help change the lives of all the dads, brothers, sons and mates in their lives.

Staying healthy in the heat. Summer has arrived and with it an important message about heat health from our friends at Ambulance Victoria. Each year your local health services care for many people with heat-related concerns. This year we anticipate outdoor activities will increase, which means preparing and knowing what to do in an emergency.

Volunteers welcomed back. Our dedicated volunteers have begun returning to their roles around MTHCS. Our gardeners, community transport and Delivered Meals volunteers were keen to get back to supporting our community and we are very pleased and grateful to have them with us again.

Board positions open. Are you passionate about the future direction of health and community services along the Mallee Track? Applications are now open for part-time board director positions at MTHCS, with terms of office commencing from July 1, 2022. These positions provide an opportunity for members of the Victorian public with relevant experience and qualifications to contribute to the strategic leadership of public health care delivery to the community.

It has been exciting to see and experience the impact of restrictions easing in our community and services. The return of visitors to our aged care facilities was such an important and welcome step. Thank you to staff and community members who ensured this transition was smooth and safe. As we begin to resume our activities in the community and adjust to what COVID-normal looks like, please be aware of what you are doing, how you are doing it, and how it might impact on you, your loved ones and our community.