How emergency department has grown during COVID-19

There are plans to expand the private Ipswich ED with demand growing rapidly

St Andrew’s Ipswich Private Hospital emergency department director Dr Graham Ireland.

NO day is ever the same for Dr Graham Ireland.

He is the director of St Andrew’s Ipswich Private Hospital’s growing emergency department.

Each shift brings with it a fresh challenge.

From the usual sports injuries on weekends to pig bites; he’s seen it all.

Dr Ireland took over the role in April but began his tenure at St Andrew’s in 2018, not long after the ED opened as part of the hospital’s $64 million redevelopment.

It has been open for two years as of this week and in that time, more than 20,000 people have been treated at the department and more than 8000 of those admitted to the hospital.

In the department’s second year, presentations rose by 14 per cent and admissions to hospital jumped by 16 per cent.

Dr Ireland expects that growth to continue in the coming months and years.

The past six months have thrown up a new set of hurdles with the outbreak of COVID-19.

“We haven’t closed since the day we opened,” he said.

LOCAL NEWS: One new COVID-19 case in cluster, takes total to 11

“Despite the challenges of the viral pandemic we’ve managed to keep our doors open 24 hours a day.

“We’re able to accept a wide range of conditions including medical … along with all surgical presentations and minor injuries.

“We try and take as much as we possibly can.

“There’s lots of work to get through. It keeps me on my toes.”

In the nine-bed department’s second year, an extra doctor and extra nursing staff were brought on to keep up with the increasing demand.

St Andrew's Ipswich Private Hospital emergency department director Dr Graham Ireland celebrates the department turning two this week.

“We get patients through relatively quickly,” Dr Ireland said.

“We have on-site radiology and we have two very dedicated pathology providers, QML and Sullivan Nicolaides.

“We get a lot done in the emergency department in terms of radiology and pathology tests and you can have a thorough assessment all done on the same day.

“People in the area, they’re keen to get things done all in one go and we can facilitate that here because we’ve got a CT scan right next to us, an x-ray machine and blood testing. After that there’s not much more you need.”

Dr Ireland, who came to Ipswich after 15 years working on the Gold Coast, said he expected the department to keep on growing.

There are plans for the ED to expand.

READ MORE: Senior goes the extra mile for incredible formal invitation

More than 65 per cent of presentations in the past two years have been people living in local 4304, 4305 and 4306 postcodes.

About 15 per cent of those were under the age of 15, 23 per cent aged between 16 and 40, 47 per cent aged between 41 and 80 and 15 per cent were over the age of 80.

“I think (hospital CEO) Claire (Thurwood) is looking to expand the emergency department down the track,” he said.

“That’s a year or two off though.”

Earlier this year Ramsay Health Care submitted a development application to Ipswich City Council, seeking approval to build a new four-storey ‘comprehensive cancer centre’.

Dr Ireland said the year had been nothing like he has ever experienced in his medical career.

“It’s been very challenging with the COVID situation,” he said.

“We’ve put enormous effort into providing a safe department that puts the patients and the staff at minimum risk.

“We’ve had no patients and no staff members test positive from the ED and no patients admitted to the hospital (with COVID-19) which is good.

“It’s the first time in my career that we’ve had to do this for such a long period of time.

“During the swine flu back in 2008 we had to do this to a certain extent. But it didn’t go for six months.

“There wasn’t the risk to health care workers as much as it is now with this illness.”

Read more stories by Lachlan McIvor here.

Originally published as