Tag Archives: oceania

'Too early' to say if Brisbane cop's blood clots caused by Pfizer vaccine

Queensland Health has responded to reports a police officer was hospitalised in Brisbane with blood clots three days after receiving the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine.

9News understands the 40-year-old man – a frontline worker responsible for patrolling Queensland quarantine hotels – received the Pfizer shot three days ago.

https://twitter.com/SophieUpcroft/status/1384641281008160768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The officer had recently undergone knee surgery and developed deep vein thrombosis as a side-effect.

He has since been discharged and is back on duty.

In a statement released this afternoon, Queensland Health said they were aware of the media reports, but directed all queries surrounding the incident to the Federal Government.

"Queensland Health is aware of media reports that a 40-year-old had presented to a hospital following the Pfizer vaccine," the statement said.

"The patient presented to a private hospital, is not currently admitted and any queries should be directed to the Federal Government.

"In Queensland, all adverse events in relation to the COVID-19 vaccines are reported to the Therapeutic Good Administration (TGA).

"The TGA will then undertake an assessment and determine whether there is any clinical link to the vaccination."

In a statement released this afternoon, Queensland Health said they were aware of the media reports, but directed all queries surrounding the incident to the Federal Government.

When asked about the case this afternoon, Queensland Deputy Premier Steven Miles said authorities are looking at if there was a link between the vaccine and the blood clotting.

"It's too early to say whether this incident is linked to the Pfizer vaccine," Mr Miles said.

"Our authorities will be looking into whether there is a link here … and looking to see if it can help inform the vaccine rollout."

Pfizer became the recommended vaccine for Australians under 50 earlier this month, after the AstraZeneca jab was linked to rare cases of potentially life-threatening blood clots.

Prior to this report, there have been three Australians diagnosed with blood clots following a dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine.

An urgent investigation by Queensland Health and Federal Authorities is underway.

Urgent investigation launched into Sydney quarantine

Another potential COVID-19 spread in hotel quarantine is under investigation by NSW Health.

The three returned travellers, two of whom are related, all tested positive to the South African strain of the virus.

All three people arrived in Australia on April 3 on the same flight, and were quarantined next door to each other at the Mercure Hotel on George Street in the Sydney CBD.

READ MORE: 'Too early' to say if Brisbane cop's blood clots caused by Pfizer vaccine

The two family members were in connecting rooms on the hotel's 10th floor, while the third person was in an adjacent room.

They all tested negative for their day two swabs in quarantine.

The family members tested positive on days seven and 10 of their stay, while the third person tested positive on day 12.

They have all been transferred to health accommodation.

NSW Health is contacting returned travellers who were on the same floor of the hotel from April 7-12.

READ MORE: Melbourne suburbs on alert after COVID-19 fragments found

They are asked to get tested and self-isolate until 14 days from the day they left quarantine at the Mercure.

Staff who worked on the floor are also being tested and self-isolating.

It comes after NSW Health confirmed the spread of COVID-19 between three family members while in quarantine in another Sydney hotel.

The three cases are all members of the one family who had been staying on the 12th floor of the Adina Apartments Hotel at Town Hall.

How tech is stopping creeps from sliding into your DMs

How you slide into DMs – and how others can slide into yours – is changing for good. 

In the coming weeks, Facebook and Instagram will roll out two new features to combat bullying and sexual harassment. 

Blocking unsolicited approaches from a person will now block messages from every Instagram or Facebook account linked to that profile. 

Second, and most importantly, Direct Message controls will automatically filter out requests containing offensive words, phrases and emojis, so you never have to see them. 

You have to turn the feature on to use it and you'll have the option to create a custom list of words, phrases or emojis that you find offensive. 

It's a feature hoped to help protect everyone from abuse, particularly those with higher profiles like sports stars.

Tayla Harris

The AFL's Tanya Hosch has been working with Facebook for the past year. 

"We feel like they've listened and taken a valuable step in the right direction," said Hosch, the league's Executive General Manager for Inclusion and Social Policy. 

"This is also an valuable update in supporting the safety and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander players, and any other person who faces discrimination and hate speech, to have a safer and more positive experience online."

Carlton's Tayla Harris has spoken publicly about how she was targeted online after her iconic kick. 

But Hawthorn's Jonathon Patton – who retired this week after being accused of sending unwanted lewd messages to women online – speaks to a broader problem. 

Filtered messages will be stored away in a separate, "hidden requests" folder. 

If you choose to open the folder, the offensive text will be hidden until you tap to uncover it. 

Only messages from people you don't follow will be filtered – Facebook Australia says most abuse isn't coming from friends. 

Managing Director Will Easton hopes "these new features are a positive step towards combating bullying and online abuse".

"We are grateful for the valuable input from sports leagues, anti-discrimination organisations, and public figures in developing these tools… and we'll continue to evolve our policies and develop technology to protect our community."

All the rules for attending and watching Anzac Day services this year

Crowds will return to this Sunday's Anzac Day ceremonies and marches around the country after 2020's unattended commemorations.

But there are still strict limits in place and plenty for would-be attendees to be aware of.

And for those who are unable to attend a parade or dawn service in person, there are other options available.

Here's what you need to know.

Anzac Day March on April 25, 2017 in Brisbane, Australia.

READ MORE: Will you get a public holiday for Anzac Day this year?

Canberra

The Australian War Memorial's dawn service normally draws up to 40,000 people in the nation's capital.

This year, crowd numbers have been limited to 4200 people for the dawn service, and 3000 for the national ceremony, which includes the veterans' march.

Those tickets have already been allocated, but people around Australia will be able to watch the service on Weekend Today on Nine from 4.45am (AEDT).

Nine.com.au's live blog will also provide rolling coverage of the ceremonies.

The dawn service itself will run from 5.30am to 6am, followed by the National Ceremony from 10.30am to 12pm.

Sydney

Sydney's main dawn service will be held at the Martin Place Cenotaph at 4.30am, followed by the march at 9am at the intersection of Martin Place and Elizabeth St, in the CBD.

There has been a limit imposed on 10,000 participants for the main march, who can register up until the day of April 25 itself.

Spectators are asked to wear masks, sanitise their hands and socially distance during the event.

Last year, people paid their respects in their driveways after Anzac Day services were cancelled.

Melbourne

A dawn service will be held at the Shrine of Remembrance from 5.40am.

All tickets have been allocated, but the ceremony will be streamed online at the Shrine's website. Victorians are also invited to take part by holding a dawn vigil in their driveway.

There is a limit of 8000 people on the state's main Anzac Day march – recently increased from 5500 – but veterans earlier this month expressed frustration at the low take-up, with fewer than 1000 people registered as of April 13.

READ MORE: Defence Minister hits out at cap on Melbourne Anzac Day march

Marchers – that is, veterans and descendants – will be able to book a ticket up until noon on April 24.

They can also march, if the limit has not been reached, if they show up and register on the morning of April 25.

Spectators have been urged to attend one of the local ceremonies, rather than the main one.

Brisbane

Brisbane will hold its traditional dawn service in Anzac Square from 4.28am, opening with the sounding of the Last Post.

The Anzac Day march will take place along its traditional route, starting on George St, from 10am-12pm.

Spectator guidelines will be reviewed up until the event but currently the events only need to comply with the state's existing COVID-19 guidelines.

Adelaide

There will be 2500 people permitted to attend Adelaide's dawn service, with tickets available here.

The ceremony at the SA National War Memorial on North Terrace will run from 5.30am-7am.

The Anzac Day march will take place from 9.30am, starting at the same location.

No descendants are invited to march this year, and the only spectators permitted will be families of marchers and non-marching veterans, due to the increased amount of space needed to mitigate COVID-19 risks.

Perth

Even Western Australia is limiting its participants at the state's major dawn service, with an upper cap of 10,000 attendees at the State War Memorial in Kings Park, Perth.

The event will start at 6am, though people are advised to arrive from 4am on. Face masks are encouraged and social distancing will be observed.

This will be followed by the Gunfire Breakfast at Government House Gardens from 7am-9am, with a limit of 2000 people. A gold coin donation is required.

The march will begin on St Georges Terrace from 9am.

Hobart

The Apple Isle's dawn service and Anzac Day march do not have attendance limits, but everybody taking part is required to register online here.

The dawn service will start at 6am at the Hobart Cenotaph.

The march will begin at 11am down Macquarie St, followed by a commemorative service at the cenotaph at 11.40am.

Darwin

Attendees at Darwin's Anzac Day events in the Northern Territory will also be required to register online for COVID-19 tracing purposes.

The dawn service will be held at 6am at the Darwin Cenotaph, followed by the march at 9am from the Esplanade end of Kentucky St.

People are asked to wear masks, sanitise their hands and practise social distancing.