Features
Plan reveals emergency closure
Bianca Clare 10th February 2010
THE Nambour General Hospital emergency department would be shut down when the proposed Kawana hospital opens in 2016.
That is the shocking disclosure in the Sunshine Coast University Hospital Health Service Plan published in April 2009.
However, the president of the Australian Medical Association, Dr Mason Stevenson, said he hoped that after pressure from local clinicians that it would now remain open.
Queensland Health did not respond to the Daily’s questions by 7.30pm yesterday despite having 48 hours notice to confirm or deny the future of Nambour’s emergency department.
“The latest monthly performance reports into Nambour Hospital show the Sunshine Coast University Hospital needs to have one of the biggest emergency departments in the state,” Dr Stevenson said.
“It needs to have this to cope with the high number of acute patients requiring beds. Nambour Hospital emergency department also needs to stay open to ensure that the 300 beds shortfall will be met.”
The Sunshine Coast University Hospital planning document states that 685 (multi-day) beds and 83 (day beds) will be required when the hospital opens.
Dr Stevenson said he urged the State Government not to delay the delivery of the new hospital.
“It will take at least three years to physically build the proposed hospital at Kawana,” he said.
“There needs to be no further delays.
“It was of great disappointment to everyone involved in the project when the government delayed the hospital opening.”
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Recent comments on this article
The emergency department is still open at Nambour. I will have to read those plans again, as this point did not stand out as an issue on first reading.
Where does the government get these ideas from? If a person is in cardiac arrest lives 20k from Nambour in the Hinterland how is that person going to get an even chance of surviving that if they have to travel further afield to get to Kawana? Sure the Ambo's can keep someone alive for the short term but in reality that foot is pushing that pedal to the metal to get you there ASAP . The hospital has all the equipment needed for virtually every emergency known to man. I am speaking from experience.I am only here because of 3 things. The ambulance station was only 4 doors up the street and a ambulance was there, The Ambo"s revived me when I died,Nambour hospital doctors revived me another 3 times. I more than likely would not have made it at all if all the above did not come into play as they did.Time in transporting to a hospital in these critical sort of cases is of the utmost importance as far as I am concerned. I worry at times now that living in Mooloolaba would I survive the trip to Nambour if I were to have another heart attack.How stupid is this plan and why has it not, prior to this been released to the public.Where is this governments accountability.
The logic is proabably something like
Senior Management: How do we avoid the negative publicity of deaths in Nambour Emergency Department?
PR Advisor: Close it down.
Planning Report Consultant: OK, I'll write it in. How will we handle the public consultation?
PR Advisor: The report will be made public, we don't need to do anything else. The Minister will handle it if it comes up.