Andrea Dawkins MP | Greens' Member for Bass
The Health Minister today failed to explain why knee and hip surgery patients who were sent interstate for operations weren't receiving adequate post-operative care at the Launceston General Hospital.
There are reports these patients are not receiving appropriate care plans upon release from hospital. In some instances, a Hobart-based gastric sleeve surgeon has travelled to Launceston to see them.
There are multiple orthopaedic surgeons in Launceston who could offer adequate care for these patients. These reports put Minister Ferguson's running of the LGH in a very dim light, and demonstrates patient care is being seriously compromised.
These LGH patients are being seen by doctors without the appropriate speciality, and some aren't receiving documentation which allows them to access future therapy. These failings have the potential to be a matter of life and death.
Minister Ferguson admitted today that many people have been waiting for elective surgeries for years. The Health Minister owes the best possible care to patients who have already waited too long for their surgery.
Health Minister, Michael Ferguson, must do all in his power to clean up his elective surgery mess at the Launceston General Hospital.