SA Health boss acts amid tensions between ambos and ED staff

The head of SA’s public hospital system says she’s ordered new measures to free up the system, as tensions simmer between stressed paramedics and ED staff.

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SA Health boss Dr Robyn Lawrence has ordered measures to free up staff as ramping takes its toll and to deal with the blow out in elective surgery queues, which now tops 20,000 cases and more than 4000 listed as overdue.

Dr Lawrence, the chief executive of the Department of Health and Wellbeing, said these measures include working with the private sector to find appropriate places for NDIS and aged care patients ready for discharge from hospital.

“Our hospitals and the wider health system have been under consistent pressure, however we are making inroads to help manage overdue elective surgery waitlists by introducing measures that create further capacity in our health system and free up staff,” she said.

In light of the death of 54-year-old disabled man Eddie of Hectorville who died after a 10 hour wait for an ambulance, Dr Lawrence noted the importance of having ambulances able to respond to emergency calls, and also acknowledged conflicting views among paramedics and ED clinicians over who gets priority.

54-year-old Hectorville man Eddie died waiting for an ambulance 10 hours after a triple zero call was first made.

It comes as The Advertiser revealed documents showing growing tensions between ambulance officers and ED staff over who gets priority — patients in ramped ambulances so paramedics can attend other calls, or those who have been waiting hours and deteriorating in crowded waiting rooms.

A survey of ED clinicians reveals ongoing pressure to deal with ramped ambulance patients first even if there are sicker patients in the waiting room, while ambulance officers say waiting room patients are being given faster treatment.

A review is underway after SA Salaried Medical Officers Association president Dr David Pope was quoted in The Advertiser saying ED clinicians are being “intimidated” into giving preference to ambulance arrivals which had lead to deaths of waiting room patients.

Under SA Health protocols a ramped ambulance patient is given priority over a waiting room patient only if they are triaged as being of an equal or higher priority.

Health minister Chris Picton with SA Health chief executive Robyn Lawrence.

“The past few days have been a sombre reminder of the importance of having ambulances available to respond to people in the community,” Dr Lawrence said.

“We have already started an independent review into Dr Pope’s serious claims that patients in ambulances are being prioritised over sicker patients in the waiting room.

“This week, the Ambulance Employees Association, and now SAAS staff, have shared their view that people in waiting rooms are being prioritised over sicker patients in ambulances.

“As a result of this alternate claim, the independent reviewers have also been asked to examine these claims.

“The results of the review were initially anticipated to be by the end of this coming week, and it is not anticipated that there will be any significant expansion of the time required as a result of this additional consideration.”

The Opposition has called for Health Minister Chris Picton to resign amid claims political interference to cut ramping is affecting patient safety, while the government accused Opposition Leader David Speirs of hyprocisy, citing a directive under the former government to prioritise ambulance patients.

Ramping hit record levels of 4285 hours in November, falling to 3595 hours in December despite the government’s core election promise to “fix” ramping.