Anaesthetists call for immediate cancellation of non-urgent elective surgery in South Australia to ensure resources for COVID-19 fight
Most elective surgery would be cancelled and medical resources redirected to the war on COVID-19 under an urgent plan put forward by hundreds of SA anaesthetists.
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Almost 200 South Australian anaesthetists want the immediate cancellation of all non-urgent elective surgery amid “grave concerns” about a shortage of resources to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
One senior clinician said some doctors are already boycotting non-urgent surgeries, in a bid to protect themselves from potential infection, hospitals are rationing protective equipment and that the community must realise “potentially thousands” of lives will be lost due to the spread of the disease.
Anaesthetists, represented by the heads of six anaesthetic clinics working across private and public hospital in SA, say cancelling non-critical surgery will slow the spread of COVID-19 and conserve the “critical supply” of resources including protective equipment.
“Critically, the cancellation of these procedures will help reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 to healthcare workers who will play an essential role in the weeks ahead,” they write in a letter sent yesterday to SA Health Minister Stephen Wade.
“It will also reduce the incidence of healthcare workers coming into close contact with infected patients, resulting in those staff being force into self-isolation for two weeks and excluding them from the healthcare workforce.
“Undertaking these changes will, of course, have an impact on patients already booked for elective surgery and have financial implications for healthcare workers, hospitals and the wider health care industry.
“However, the opportunity to alter the course of this imminent health disaster is closing fast. The time to act is now.”
Anaesthetists and surgeons are angry with the Federal Government delaying the start of a ban on private hospital non-urgent elective surgery to April 1.
The Government announced on Wednesday all non-urgent operations in public and private hospitals would be cancelled from midnight Thursday in light of the coronavirus pandemic.
But a late-night amendment gave private hospitals a few more days to respond to the changes allowing semi-urgent category two and three elective surgeries to proceed.
In the letter doctors “strongly recommend” the immediate cancellation of all non-urgent” elective surgery in SA’s public and private hospitals.
“We strongly urge the SA Department of Health to provide clear direction on the types of surgeries that should proceed during the current crisis,” they write.
Anaesthetist Dr Ivan Ward told The Advertiser that in a pandemic only SA Health can make any “enforceable decree” regarding which surgery is appropriate. He said SA Health was expected to provide advice to doctors today.
He said the Federal Government’s “last-minute” backflip on delaying private procedures was not based on any clinical reasoning.
“The real question to ask is what is the motivation,” he said.
He said doctors have “grave clinical concerns” with the lack of personal protective equipment, and that some hospitals are having to ration protective equipment.
In some cases staff have not been using masks when “clinically appropriate”, he said.
He said he was among doctors who have also refused to attend surgeries except for emergency procedures.
“I’m going to be working intensive care when this pandemic hits,” he says. “If we’re losing anaesthetists now to asymptomatic patients, we will not be in the workforce in two to four weeks.
“I cannot emphasise how significant the impact of this pandemic will have on the country ... patients need to accept the delay of their surgery for the betterment of society.
“People need to wake up to the fact we are going to be potentially losing thousands of people.”
The Advertiser has sought comment from Mr Wade.