TURN UP THE HEAT

You may have been hot under the collar all last week in the heat wave. But I am hot under the collar today and last week’s hellish temperatures are the reason. It concerns shocking conditions on some of our nursing homes and private hospitals. Terrible, unacceptable behaviour by people who get government money –taxpayers’ money – to provide a decent, safe and comfortable standard of care for our elderly.

The one I want to talk about, and sadly they are not alone, is the Fawkner Private Hospital in Coburg.

As healthy people sweltered and suffered discomfort last week listen to these extracts from e-mails I received from desperate and angry relatives of patients:

‘I recently visited a relative at John Fawkner on two of the forty above degrees days and was shocked to discover the patients and nurses were working in terrible conditions. There was no air conditioning at all for patients or staff. Thinking it may be because of the long week of heat, I inquired, ‘when will the air conditioning come back on’and the reply I received was unbelievable ."We haven't had aircon on the wards for years yet the administration people have it in their office.’ For a private hospital it seems the pencil pushers are more important than the frail and elderly or any patient of this hospital, not to mention the hard working nurses. ‘

And this one:

‘My elderly 89-year-old  neighbour was admitted to John Fawkner last Friday at 5 in the morning. Although she had been on oxygen for 16 hours a day at home she called an ambulance because she was finding it extremely difficult to breath. I visited her about 2 pm  and found her very distressed. Her room was stifling as there wasn't any air conditioning nor was there even a fan in her room. This environment certainly wasn't helping her breathing. I rang her bell to ask a staff member for a fan . I was told that they had been  looking for a fan but there wasn't a fan to be seen.  I immediately went to my neighbour's home to get a fan for her. I'm appalled knowing that very sick patients are and have been stressed due to the lack of air conditioning and fans at the John Fawkner hospital.’

Well, I’m more than appalled, because we had the same problem at the Fawkner a year ago.  January 10 2008. I talked to one Russ Street, a glib spokesman for the hospital, and he promised me on 3AW that the air conditioning would be fixed.

The fact that I’m getting the same complaints a year later is almost criminal and do you know what the bosses in their air conditioned offices have come up with this time? A memo to patients:

‘Sorry for the inconvenience, the aircon won't be upgraded in time for this summer, if you have any concerns contact the nursing staff’.
This is a disgrace.

Monday, February 2, 2009

© Copyright Derryn Hinch 2009