Covid Qld: Hospital emergency departments now ‘unsafe’

Doctors have warned of unsafe conditions in emergency departments as they plead with Queenslanders to consider working from home.

Queensland hospitals are at breaking point, with most departments operating at a high-impact tier-three pandemic response as doctors warn of unsafe conditions in emergency departments.

The revelation comes as Queensland hit its highest single day of Covid-19 hospitalisations, with 983 people in hospital on Tuesday, including 24 in ICU.

As of Sunday Metro North Hospital and Health Service had the highest number of Covid-19 hospitalisations with 194, followed by Metro South (137), Gold Coast (100) and Sunshine Coast (76).

The majority of hospital and health services in the southeast are now operating at tier three, where patient loads are shared, bed capacity is expanded to private hospitals and category-three surgery is suspended.

A Queensland Health spokeswoman said health system pressures were due to “hospitalisations and a large number of furloughed staff” but high-priority patients would still be treated.

“Anyone who presents at one of our emergency departments will be seen, however we will always treat the most urgent cases first,” she said.

West Moreton HHS, centred on Ipswich, was the worst affected at a tier-four level, with the impact on hospitals increased due to expanding clusters and outbreaks.

Queensland recorded a spike in cases, with 9992 recorded on Tuesday and 18 deaths.

It comes as federal health experts pleaded with Australians to work from home where possible and to wear masks indoors.

Covid-19 testing at 4Cyte Pathology yesterday. Picture: Steve Pohlner

More than 50,000 Covid-19 cases were recorded nationwide in the previous 24 hours, but the true case numbers were likely to be double the official 300,000 figure, Health Minister Mark Butler warned.

Federal chief medical officer Paul Kelly urged Australians to do everything in their power to stop the spread – including working from home.

“We have done this before and we can do this again,” he said.

“I really very strongly suggest that you do wear masks … This will not be forever but for the next few weeks.”

Meanwhile, the government has confirmed it is in talks with the defence force to expand the aged care surge workforce, which had been rolling down following the surge of cases in January.

Nationally the ratio of aged care homes battling Covid-19 outbreaks has increased week-on-week from one in five to one in three.

An Ipswich doctor warned EDs were struggling with very sick respiratory patients clogging up halls, while those with other ailments and injuries experienced extreme wait times for medical care.

He also reported that medics so stressed at not being able to give their best care, many are contemplating walking away from hospitals that are already dealing with doctor shortages.

“We couldn’t efficiently deal with patient volumes at Ipswich Hospital before Covid but now it is insane and unsafe,” an emergency doctor at the hospital told The Courier-Mail.

“We have staff shortages across the spectrum, both doctors and nurses, but unsurprisingly there is constant chatter among staff about finding a less stressful career.”

With more than 1000 people in hospital with Covid-19 or the flu, there’s more than double that number of healthcare staff off work due to illness, placing an additional strain on resources, according to Australian Medical Association Queensland president Maria Boulton.

“This is putting a huge strain on our hospitals,” she said.

“Staff are exhausted. They are working harder than ever to cover for colleagues who are sick or in isolation.”

Dr Boulton said that despite the new sub variants being “incredibly infectious”, Queenslanders were fatigued by the virus and becoming complacent with rules.

“There seems to be a resignation or an acceptance that Covid is here to stay and it’s not worth taking simple precautions like wearing masks,” she said.

Meanwhile, Queensland Nurses and Midwives Union secretary Beth Mohle said nurses and midwives had been under intense pressure to deal with the surge in hospital admissions.

“Our nurses and midwives are working incredible hours in order to keep Queenslanders safe. They are doing the best they can under very difficult circumstances,” Ms Mohle said.

“Many nurses and midwives have significantly or totally depleted their personal leave balances due to one or multiple Covid infections in their families and households.”