Australian Honoured for Protecting Corrective Services Inmates and Staff from COVID-19

Jacob Jackson was named on the King’s Birthday 2023 Honours List 12 June 2023 for outstanding public service in implementing Rapid Antigen Screening for Corrective Services in the Australian state of New South Wales.

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This service, providing an essential tool in detecting COVID-19-positive persons and preventing transmission in high-risk environments, was rolled out to staff and inmates across 140 Corrective Services sites including all NSW Correctional Centres.

The first focus was on facilities that were entry points of persons coming into custody. Jacob’s team saw these places as being at highest risk for COVID being introduced into the entire system.

Where there was an outbreak in another facility, the team would set up a rapid testing system within 24 hours which included non-clinical staff being trained to administer testing.

Hundreds of thousands of RAS tests were conducted, keeping some facilities completely protected from COVID.

Jacob is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from the Castle Hill congregation in NSW.

He says, “The development and implementation of Rapid Antigen Screening within Corrective Services was one of my most challenging experiences in my professional career and I am proud of the outcomes it produced and even more proud of the amazing team I worked with that made it a success. I feel exceptionally grateful to have played a part in supporting the health and wellbeing of my colleagues.”

Jacob used his unique skills and abilities to procure Rapid Antigen Tests in August 2021, when their use was novel, and maintained the procurement and supply of these tests at competitive prices, saving a significant amount for the NSW Government. 

His hard work and dedication allowed for securing enough supply to test every 24 hours across all 36 Correctional Centres. 

Jacob also undertook a Graduate Certificate in Emergency and Disaster Management, ensuring he continued to be an effective and resourceful leader. 

He worked tirelessly setting up testing sites and ensuring a sufficient supply of tests, often with as little as one day's notice. 

As a result of Jacob’s work, CSNSW is currently the leader in the use of RAS in non-clinical settings across Australia, has undertaken over a million Rapid Antigen Tests, and managed to detect and prevent over 2,000 persons with COVID-19 from entering the workplace.

“It has been a challenging road,” he says, “but one from which we have all gained valuable experience.”