The under-fire Northern Beaches Hospital has come under more scrutiny with a leaked email revealing staff doubt the facilities ability to assure patient safety.
The email, which was reportedly viewed by the ABC was sent by a senior anaesthetist who resigned from the facility, and stated that the hospital “fails completely in its primary objective of patient safety.”
(There are) “fundamental systemic failings in the way the hospital has been set up and is currently running” the email allegedly said.
“There was an inadequate supply of equipment, insufficiently trained staff, poor protocols for simple requests such as a blood transfusion, and a complete lack of a cohesive plan for [a] worst-case scenario.”
Staff on the job in the hospital
The email, sent to the head of the department Dr Alistair Boyce, also spoke of a patient who, when faced with routine requirements before surgery “survived somewhat against the odds. This is clearly unacceptable.”
The patient in question, Astrid McCrank, told the ABC that her anaesthetist had an argument before the procedure on November 5 because: “The blood bank only wanted to send two units of blood and the anaesthetist said, ‘I’m not starting ’till I have 6′.”
“There is a complete lack of morale throughout the hospital,” said the resignation letter, the sender of which was not involved in the above-mentioned procedure.
Lillie McCrank, born seven weeks premature, survived the surgery
The main points raised in the email were the need for trolleys to be stocked with better breathing equipment, the need for after-hours specialists in the intensive care unit, the need for a first-response team to emergencies & specialist theatre, recovery and post-operative nursing staff in paediatric cases.
Dr Boyce reportedly responded to the emails criticising the sender for “shouting out from the sidelines and doing nothing. Be part of the solution and not the problem.”
“To be frank I am embarrassed by the conduct of certain members of our department and ashamed to be associated with them through the anaesthetic department of NBH,” he wrote.
In reply, the anaesthetist, who had 15 years experience noted that “Any dissenting views have been threatened with having their accreditation removed.”
“This constitutes workplace bullying and is completely unacceptable.”
Dr Boyce did not return any comment to the ABC when he was offered the chance.
The company that owns the hospital, Healthscope, issued a statement insisting that “we are working closely and collaboratively with all our medical staff every day to ensure continuous improvement.” Read the entire statement below.
“We are working closely and collaboratively with our all our medical staff every day to ensure continuous improvement, quality and safety within our state-of-the-art hospital. The dedication, support and communication from the vast majority of the medical team has been superb. “We are committed to providing world-class, patient-centered care for the Northern Beaches community, and in doing so we recognise the dedication and focus of our hospital team in consistently delivering great health outcomes. “There are many, many good stories from our first month of operation. We have delivered more than 160 babies and cared for almost 5,000 patients by providing medical, surgical, critical care and mental health services, as well as paediatrics, renal, cancer care and cardiology services. “We will continue our tireless effort to care for the patients in our community and foster a healthy, productive and rewarding environment for our people.”
