COVID Contact Tracking for Businesses

Mandatory COVID Contact Tracking and QR apps

With new cases of COVID being reported recently, now is a good time to remind all PAA members that contact tracking is mandatory for indoor fitness/recreation venues, including Pilates, in every State across Australia. The contact information of all clients, contractors, visitors, apprentices and staff must be recorded every visit as well as their entry and exit times.

In most States (NSW, VIC, SA, ACT and TAS) it is also mandatory to use electronic means to capture the information via QR code, such as the locally provided government apps. There are only three States, QLD, NT and WA which allow details to be collected through other means such as your online booking system or a non-electronic solution.

Easy to set up QR codes

In some States, if you’ve registered your COVID safe plan your QR code will have been sent to you. All you need to do is display it prominently and make sure visitors are using it.

Elsewhere, the process to register a venue and create your code is generally quick and simple. For example, Chris, our Education Officer, went online this morning to register a new venue for her next workshop. On the Service NSW website it took roughly 5 minutes to register the venue and set up a new code which was instantly emailed to her.

One QR code for each venue

A unique QR code is required for each venue you use, but once they are displayed onsite there’s nothing to do except make sure everyone uses it to check in. Using the app removes all responsibility for secure storage of contact tracing information, and if you’re unlucky enough to have an infected visitor you’re not scrambling to prepare and share your other means of data collection.

Remember, it’s mandatory in five states to use either the local QR app or (for NSW) an equivalent QR collection solution for your contact tracking, so there could also be penalties if you’re not using the correct system.

If you haven’t yet set up your QR codes yet, do it today!

Useful links:

NSW
https://www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19/covid-safe/customer-record-keeping/setting-up-electronic-check-and-qr-codes

VIC
https://www.coronavirus.vic.gov.au/about-victorian-government-qr-code-service

SA
https://www.covid-19.sa.gov.au/business-and-events/covid-safe-check-in

ACT
https://www.covid19.act.gov.au/business-and-work/check-in-cbr/information-for-businesses

WA
https://www.wa.gov.au/organisation/covid-communications/covid-19-coronavirus-contact-registers

QLD
https://www.health.qld.gov.au/system-governance/legislation/cho-public-health-directions-under-expanded-public-health-act-powers/business-activity-undertaking-direction/guest-and-staff-contact-information-requirements

NT
https://coronavirus.nt.gov.au/business-and-work/safety-supervisors-and-contact-tracing#/covidsafe_checkin

TAS
https://coronavirus.tas.gov.au/check-in-tas