Hospitals get sick bill of health
December 18, 2008
Section: News
Between two and five emergency patients are held in corridors at Wollongong Hospital every day.
The finding, contained in the recently released Garling Report into the NSW public hospital system, is just one of many disturbing insights into the local hospital’s flailing standard of care.
Wollongong Hospital was visited by Dr Garling during the research stage of the report and is used as an example of sub-par or dangerous practices on numerous occasions throughout the report - providing some official backing to anecdotal reports widely publicised in the media prior to the report being conducted.
One report to Mr Garling came from a junior doctor at Wollongong who found it impossible to obtain help from senior doctors after finding a number of problems with a patient.
A 62-year-old Berkeley man died at Wollongong Hospital in 2005 after a successful hip replacement.
Anthony Rogers developed a bowel obstruction after his surgery but was not treated properly and died as a consequence.
Mr Garling says in the report that he was told people wait in corridors of the Emergency Department at the hospital on a daily basis while waiting for beds.
Mr Garling also reported being told that at one stage last year 241 patients in the recovery ward were inappropriately admitted through the Emergency Department because of a lack of beds.
This year the Wollongong and Northern Leader told the story of an 83-year-old Wollongong resident who spent 13 hours waiting for a bed at the hospital in April.
Illawarra community mental health services were identified in the report as being “particularly badly off.”
Health Minister John Della Bosca has said the government will make a formal response to the report in March 2009. The Minister held the first or a series of ministerial forums to discuss the Garling report on Monday and there may be as many as 12 of these meetings before the government responds in around three months time.
