‘No confidence’: Riverland residents fearful of Riverland General Hospital

After a young boy died from the flu, Riverland residents are frightened of their own hospital – with staff forgetting about one woman and an elderly cancer patient refused admission.

When news broke of a six-year-old Berri boy with influenza dying after being sent home from the local hospital in the days before his death, it brought back haunting memories for some Riverland residents.

Two of those residents were Jack and Poppy Papageorgiou whose 27-year-old son Theo died by suicide in 2016 after being sent home from the Riverland General Hospital.

“No parent should be taking their children … to the grave,” Mr Papageorgiou said.

“When you see this happening still today, it’s very sad – SA Health has a lot to answer.”

An inquest in 2021 into the handling of Theo’s case found despite attending hospital twice in January 2016 seeking to be admitted under the Mental Health Act, he “received no meaningful assistance”.

27-year-old Theo Papageorgiou from the Riverland who died after presenting at Riverland General Hospital. Picture: Supplied by family

Theo’s death was preventable, he was misdiagnosed and his case was mismanaged by the health system, according to the coronial inquest.

Mr Papageorgiou said when Theo was discharged he was told “you’ve got good parents, go home” – he died later that month.

Mr and Ms Papageorgiou have been afraid to go to Riverland General Hospital ever since.

“I feel nervous … I don’t have any confidence,” Mr Papageorgiou said.

When Ms Papageorgiou was diagnosed with breast cancer after the death of her son she begged her doctor to be treated in Adelaide fearing the Riverland General Hospital would mismanage her as well.

But when Ms Papageorgiou got Covid in April 2022 she decided to go to the hospital close to home for what she believed would be a simple infusion.

Jack Papageorgiou said he has lost confidence in the SA healthcare system. Picture: Ben Clark

“I got Covid and … there was an infusion I could have to minimise the effects … what could go wrong?” she asked

Ms Papageorgiou was left in an isolated room for more than three hours when she realised the hospital staff had forgotten about her.

She called the front desk. A staff member came to prepare her for the infusion and said they would be back with the medication – they didn’t return for another two hours.

“When they got the medicine they found out it was out of date,” Ms Papageorgiou said.

“How can the hospital have out-of-date medication?”

The couple said many members of the community had similar fears but believed “you can’t do anything about it”.

Nicole Holme brought her elderly mother into emergency at Riverland General Hospital twice. Picture: Ben Clark

Two weeks ago, Nicole Holme was left furious at Riverland General Hospital after they refused to admit her elderly mother who had a history of cancer and had not eaten or drank properly in days.

According to Ms Holme, the hospital discovered the 76-year-old had an inflamed bowel brought on by a gastrointestinal disease called diverticulitis.

“I said to them, ‘I don’t want to take her home, she’s not well enough’,” Ms Holme said.

“It felt like they were having a quiet day, so let’s just put some fluids in and we’ll send her home, she’s got a daughter to look after her … it felt like she wasn’t important as a patient.”

The next day, Ms Holme and her mother visited their regular GP who wrote a letter to Riverland General Hospital asking for Ms Holme’s mother to be admitted.

When they returned she was refused admission again.

“(They) said, ‘we don’t want to admit anyone unless they need to be’,” Ms Holme said.

“I said, ‘she’s 76 years old, she hasn’t eaten for five days, or had any medication’.

“She was scared … she’s lost confidence in the healthcare system.”

The Riverland General Hospital. Picture: Ben Clark

A Riverland resident exiting the hospital, who wished to remain anonymous for privacy reasons, told The Advertiser she was dismissed after presenting with shortness of breath.

According to the woman, after an examination she was told she should “go home and have a Panadol”.

“It feels like they are trying to get you in and out as fast as possible,” she said. “But it’s all we’ve got.”

Another Riverland woman said while she had always had good experiences at the hospital, during Covid she felt she was discharged earlier than she would’ve liked.

“Operations were going on and I think they needed the beds,” the woman, who had been suffering with pneumonia at the time, said.

Riverland Mallee Coorong Local Health Network (RMCLHN) chief executive Wayne Champion said “we will make it a priority to reach out to any families who have been identified”.

“RMCLHN treats all complaints seriously,” he said in a statement.

“We encourage people will concerns about the care they have received to raise them directly with us, and we will ensure they are thoroughly reviewed.

“People who present to our emergency department are assessed by our clinical team and treatment is provided based on the outcome of this assessment.

“If the outcome of the clinical assessment indicates that someone requires an admission to hospital, this will be arranged.”

RMCLHN governing board chairman Peter Joyner said the board “constantly reviews the organisation’s performance to ensure that there are ongoing processes of continuous quality improvement, including a thorough complaints investigation process”.

“I encourage anyone who has concerns about their care to contact the LHN directly,” he said.

These comments come after clinical reviews headed by an “external doctor” were launched into cases at the Riverland hospital amid claims of a “pattern of circumstance” that include three pediatric cases.

Dr Joyner said the board “supports the proposal that an independent external review be undertaken of three recent pediatric cases”.

While the inquiry is set to focus on at least three cases, including the six-year-old Berri boy’s death and another two allegations of poor care, other hospital process will also be examined “if required”, RMCLHN officials said.