`Overprepared': code for a health system in crisis
The current failures of the Victorian health and ambulance systems, and undiagnosed cancers, are the result of hugely deficient planning by the Victorian Government last year.
In May 2020, the Victorian Government told the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee, PAEC, that it had done the COVID work to make sure “Victoria’s hospitals can continue to treat patients with other conditions at the same time.”
This is not the case.
Today nearly 70,000 people are waiting for elective surgeries, more than 2000 of which are critical Category 1 patients.
The Government, and its CHO Professor Brett Sutton, failed to answer PAEC questions about whether it even modelled the impact of cancelled elective surgeries.
Public patients are being treated in private hospitals before patients with private health cover. Private patient surgeries have been pushed well into next year, exposing them to declining health.
Doctors have indicated that hospitals such as Barwon Health in Geelong have become ‘dumping’ grounds for COVID-19 patients from Melbourne. The hospital is believed to be earning $16,000 a day from ICU revenue.
It means surgeries such as heart operations can’t happen because the ICU beds are taken.
Front line staff are exhausted dealing with a pressure-cooker health system caused by the Victorian Government’s failure to prepare, including grossly inept elective surgery modelling.
Member for Western Victoria and Shadow Assistant Minister for Scrutiny of Government, Bev McArthur, says it is a health scandal.
“On the Government’s behalf, then Health Minister Jenny Mikakos told PAEC a huge furphy, openly self-congratulating the Government for its hospital preparedness for Covid and beyond.
“That Ms Mikakos is no longer the Minister is irrelevant. Her message was backed by the Premier, and nothing in the health plan has changed,” Mrs McArthur said.
Ms Mikakos told PAEC: “I do not think we have any issues with people perhaps at some point in time saying that Victoria is overprepared. We are better off being overprepared than underprepared…”
Mrs McArthur, a recent appointee to the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee, said this view is offensive to every Victorian given the ongoing health and covid scandals.
“We learn in recent days that the Australian Defence Force is on standby to help hospitals if they become overwhelmed by covid cases.
“They are already helping to drive ambulances – which are then ramping at hospitals in long queues.
“But worse than that are the numbers presented in The Age on Friday that show more than 3500 undetected cancers will hit the Victorian health system next year.
“The Victorian Cancer Registry says these cancers went undiagnosed during the Daniel Andrews imposed lockdowns between April last year and August this year.
“He spread fear. He locked people up. He stopped the health system from working properly. He effectively discouraged Victorians from leaving home to even get their health issues checked out by their GP.
“And despite this, the Government crowed that it was overprepared.
“Add to this, the crisis in the Triple Zero emergency call system in which recent reports indicate two people died of cardiac arrest, their care delayed when 000 calls for help went unanswered for 5 minutes.
“Other calls have waited up to 33 minutes when the target is 5 seconds.
“At least the head of the 000 system, the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority, has had the dignity, conscience and accountability to know to step down.
“It’s what this Premier should do.
“He should have 801 lives on his conscience – plus all those who have suicided due to his failed pandemic management, or indeed those now facing delayed cancer diagnoses.
“This Premier has overseen and dictated so many wrongs, including the current tales coming out of IBAC.
“His inability to take responsibility is not going unnoticed by the weary Victorian public.
“His decline may be one via a thousand cuts, any one of which would have been enough for a Premier with a shred of decency and accountability to resign.
“Enough is enough, even with the look-over-there-distractions he continues to conjure.”
24 October 2021