Chief Health Officer Alerts

Date issued: 05 April 2019 Issued by: Dr Brett Sutton, Chief Health Officer, Victoria Issued to: Health professionals, consumers Key messages Poisonous mushrooms including Death Cap mushrooms and Yellow-staining mushrooms are currently growing around Victoria. Extreme caution is advised when…

Date issued: 28 March 2019 (update to Alert issued 26 March 2019) Issued by: Dr Brett Sutton, Chief Health Officer, Victoria Issued to: General practitioners and hospital emergency departments Key messages There have been additional unrelated cases of measles in…

Date issued: 21 March 2019 Issued by: Dr Brett Sutton, Chief Health Officer Issued to: Health professionals and consumers Key messages A national recall of eggs produced by Bridgewater Poultry is underway following the detection of a particular strain of…

Monday 14 January 2019 There has been a case of measles who may have been infectious whilst at Box Hill Hospital between Thursday 10 January and Sunday 13 January 2019: Thursday 10 January: Box Hill Hospital (8.00am to 9.30pm) including…

24 September 2018 Status: Active Date issued: 24 September 2018 Issued by: Dr Angie Bone, Deputy Chief Health Officer (Environment), Victoria Issued to: Health professionals, consumers Key messages Be alert for patients presenting with symptoms of lead poisoning, particularly those…

Key messages A Victorian man has been diagnosed with the uncommon fungal superbug Candida auris (also known as C. auris). This is the first known case of C. auris in Victoria. C. auris is a fungus which can cause colonisation on the skin, or invasive infections…

Due to unprecedented demand across Australia for influenza vaccine in 2018, there is now no stock available for order in Victoria of Fluarix Tetra, FluQuadri, Afluria Quad, Fluzone High Dose and Fluad. There is limited stock of FluQuadri Junior licensed…

Status: Active Date issued: 17 April 2018 Issued by: Dr Brett Sutton, Acting Chief Health Officer, Victoria Issued to: General practitioners Key messages Two cases of multi-drug resistant gonorrhoea infection have been detected in Australia. The emergence of this strain,…

Key messages There has been a confirmed case of hepatitis A in a food handler who worked while infectious at Cumulus Inc. restaurant, 45 Flinders Lane, Melbourne. Any person who ate food - especially uncooked food - at Cumulus Inc. between 26…

There have been three confirmed cases of measles in Melbourne in March this year, with the infection likely to have been acquired overseas. The three cases are unrelated. The most recent case was infectious on Saturday 10 March at a…

There has been one confirmed case of measles in Melbourne, with the infection likely to have been acquired overseas. The case was infectious whilst at a number of places across Melbourne between 3 March and 7 March including Flinders Street…

Key messages There is a national outbreak of listeriosis linked to the consumption of rockmelon (cantaloupe) from New South Wales, leading to a trade-level recall on Thursday 1 March, 2018. Ten cases have been identified as part of this outbreak…

Sunday 28th January 2018 The Chief Health Officer has issued a heat health alert to notify you of forecast extreme heat conditions at or above heat health temperature thresholds, based on the Bureau of Meteorology 7-day forecast.  Organisations should respond…

Key messages Victorian syphilis and gonorrhoea notifications have increased in the last few years, with cases reported predominantly in men who have sex with men (MSM). Syphilis and gonorrhoea can be transmitted by unprotected vaginal, anal and oral sex. Syphilis…

Key messages An outbreak of hepatitis A virus infection has been identified to be potentially linked to the consumption of Creative Gourmet frozen mixed berries in 300g packs. The product has been recalled as a precaution. Please advise patients not…

Key messages Shigella bacteria are commonly resistant to some antibiotics, however, increasing antibiotic resistance associated with recent Shigella infections has been observed, particularly in men who have sex with men. Be alert for shigellosis in high risk populations including men…

Key messages There is a confirmed case of measles in a person who was infectious while on flight GA716 from Jakarta to Melbourne, departing Jakarta at 23.55 on Friday, 12 May 2017 and arriving at Tullamarine at 09.20 on Saturday,…

Key messages There has been an increase in cases of Legionnaires’ disease (Legionella pneumophila, serogroup 1) notified to the department in recent weeks. As at 11 May 2017, there have been 47 cases of Legionella infection notified to the department…

Key messages Extreme caution is advised when picking and consuming wild mushrooms - if in doubt, don't consume. Poisonous mushrooms including Death Cap mushrooms and Yellow-staining mushrooms are currently growing around Victoria as a result of recent heavy rains. Cooking,…

Key messages Five cases of Legionnaires’ disease (Legionella pneumophila, serogroup 1) have been identified in the last fortnight involving individuals who have spent time in the eastern half of Melbourne’s Central Business District (CBD) and/or Southbank.  Be alert for Legionnaires’…