Stakeholders: What’s going on with health services?

Booked for an elective surgery at a public hospital, you might have to look for other options.

Elective surgery has been cancelled at all hospitals across the state, including the Naracoorte Hospital.

Reason, the health system is heaving under an illness load, with a large number of Covid and flu cases in the community resulting in staff shortages, forcing public hospitals to operate in internal emergencies.

Declaring a system-wide internal emergency last week, health department boss Dr Robyn Lawrence said the hospitals were continuing to experience significant demands, resulting in very busy emergency departments.

“To manage the demand, our local hospital networks have opened all available hospital beds, maximised out of hospital care options, and paused Category 3 and some Category 2 elective surgery in metropolitan and country hospitals,” Dr Lawrence said.

“Category 1 and paediatric urgent Category 2 elective surgeries are continuing as planned,” she said.

Dr Lawrence said many hospitals are also being impacted by the large amount of respiratory illness in the community, in particular Fand flu, which is also creating staff shortages.

“We currently have more than 140 patients in hospitals with Covid and flu, and our metropolitan hospitals have reported around 270 staff currently off sick with Covid.”

The [Naracoorte Community] News asked SA Health about how this decision impact patients and specialists of the Naracoorte Hospital.

SA Health said as a result of the statewide Code Yellow, the Limestone Coast Health Network (LHN) has paused Category 3 and some Category 2 elective surgery across the LHN including at Naracoorte, Bordertown, Millicent and Mount Gambier hospitals.

“Category 1 and some Category 2 elective surgeries are continuing as planned, ensuring that our patients are still able to undergo urgent procedures,” SA Health said.

This, SA Health said will assist them to ensure patients from our communities who have been receiving treatment in Adelaide and are assessed as able to, can be transferred back to the LHN over coming days and continue their care closer to home.

“Our hospitals remain open to care, however we would ask that people with non-urgent conditions explore alternative care first including your GP, pharmacist, an Urgent Care Centre, calling healthdirect or using a virtual care service.”

Opposition Leader David Speirs said for many South Australians who have been waiting for life changing elective surgery, some in pain for significant periods of time, this decision by the Malinauskas Government will be a devastating blow.

“Why? Because the Malinauskas Labor Government has failed to fix the ramping crisis that is crippling our health system, regardless of what they promised South Australians ahead of the 2022 state election,” Mr Speirs claimed.

He said he was concerned about the long-term effect this cancellation will have on South Australians and our health system.

“Peter Malinauskas promised to fix ramping and asked you to “vote Labor like your life depends on it”, but on his watch our health system is worse than ever.

“If you have a story you’d like to share of your experience with our healthcare system, or if you have been impacted by the cancellation of elective surgeries, please reach out to my office and my team may be able to help advocate for a better outcome.”

Shadow Minister for Regional Health, Penny Prett said they understand the need for Labor to cancel elective surgeries in Adelaide to free up hospital beds with record ramping on Peter Malinauskas’ watch.

“But what we don’t understand – or accept – is Labor’s move to cancel elective surgery statewide when we know country people are already worse off when it comes to getting the healthcare they need closer to home,” Me Prett said.

She said South Australians are on the waitlist for years for some of these life altering operations and where possible, and safe, we shouldn’t be adding to that delay.

Elective surgeries are anything that isn’t deemed an emergency – a surgery that could help cure chronic pain, like a critical joint replacement, gall bladder surgery or even laparoscopy surgeries that help women suffering from endometriosis.

This article appeared in the  Naracoorte Community News.