A distressed father recently recounted the chaos he witnessed within the emergency department of a prominent Sydney hospital as he anxiously awaited medical attention throughout the entire night for his 16-year-old daughter, who was grappling with severe abdominal pain.
The father, known only as Paul, shared his ordeal with Ben Fordham on 2GB radio. Paul vividly described the overwhelming conditions at Westmead Hospital, likening the waiting area to a bustling sports event.
He tragically witnessed a woman experiencing a seizure on the emergency department floor, attributing the incident to a notable shortage of doctors.
According to Paul, even the dedicated night-shift nurses confided in him, urging him to raise awareness about the critical staffing deficit by asking Fordham's show to show this.
Expressing his frustration, Paul remarked, "You would not think we're in Sydney, in one of the best hospitals in the world. It's a disgrace. There's people being violent towards the nurses, which is terrible, but they're frustrated."
He approximated that there were between 80 to 100 individuals seeking medical assistance in the overcrowded emergency department at that time.
This alarming situation at Westmead Hospital has been previously exposed by 9News, with patients reporting exceptionally lengthy wait times, some enduring waits of up to 30 hours before seeing a doctor. An unsettling photograph emerged, depicting a patient lying on the waiting room floor, connected to an IV drip, highlighting the severity of the circumstances.
In response to Paul's grievance, Ryan Park, the New South Wales (NSW) Health Minister, acknowledged the concerning shortage of doctors across the state, with particular emphasis on Westmead Hospital. Park committed to addressing these issues and ensuring the allocation of sufficient staff to ameliorate the situation.
But this issue has been going on for years and has only worsened. 1.5 million visit NSW emergency departments for non-urgent issues. Cost of living and finding bulk billed GP's has made it an issue for these hospitals, due to waves of people going top hospital for alternatives instead of paying.
Our government does everything else but fix our main issues.
3 comments
Abraham
The government should make an app where people can access to it to see how many patients are waiting in line in the emergency departments in hospitals across NSW so they can make a dicison in which hospital to visit.
The government should make an app where people can access to it to see how many patients are waiting in line in the emergency departments in hospitals across NSW so they can make a dicison in which hospital to visit.
Essan
Yes the situation been like this for many years, where I had to wait sometimes 24 hours so a doctor could look at my daughter in Westmead children hospital .. but again the doctors and nurses and all the staff in Westmead hospital the do a remarkable job
Yes the situation been like this for many years, where I had to wait sometimes 24 hours so a doctor could look at my daughter in Westmead children hospital .. but again the doctors and nurses and all the staff in Westmead hospital the do a remarkable job
Sle
I was with my partner on monday (public holiday) emergency department bankstown for 11 hours and i what i saw really sadden me. How poor is our health system. These poor nurses who cant keep up and get abused by patients who are in so much pain and are frustrated for waiting 10 plus hours just to get seen.
I was with my partner on monday (public holiday) emergency department bankstown for 11 hours and i what i saw really sadden me. How poor is our health system. These poor nurses who cant keep up and get abused by patients who are in so much pain and are frustrated for waiting 10 plus hours just to get seen.