Mater hospitals’ pathology upgrade delays ‘putting patients at risk’

Mater Health has apologised to doctors after claims the most significant upgrade to pathology services in 30 years is failing.

The Mater Hospital in South Brisbane

Patients at Mater hospitals are being put at risk by a pathology service upgrade that is causing delays in test results, clinicians have warned.

The technology boost to Mater Pathology, which serves more than 750,000 patients each year in South East Queensland, went live 10 days ago but doctors are reporting that the long wait for vital results is hampering vital healthcare decisions.

Doctors and nurses in emergency departments and in operating theatres need fast turnaround pathology results to be able to make clinical decisions on how to safely and effectively treat very ill patients.

“I think we need to stop saying the IT is s--- and start saying there’s a massive patient safety risk,” one clinician said.

Mater told The Courier-Mail that bosses apologised to doctors who had been inconvenienced by the issue, and emphasised that patient safety was the number one priority.

An executive emergency meeting to address the problems was held at the South Brisbane hospital earlier this week.

Mater Pathology, founded in 1919, conducts more than three million tests each year for both public and private patients.

Mater Pathology on its website boasted that the upgrade to streamline services would be the most significant since 1995.

The Mater Hospital in South Brisbane

Before the launch of the new system Mater warned that there may be some impact to processing of non-urgent work from November 23-25.

Clinicians also claim they no longer have access to a vital phone app that allows them to receive results of pathology tests while doing their jobs anywhere in the hospital.

A spokesman said: “Mater Pathology launched an upgraded laboratory information system (LIS) 10 days ago.

“The new system provides enhanced cybersecurity protection for sensitive data.

“Mater acknowledges that some doctors initially experienced delays in accessing results due to the system’s additional security measures and changes in laboratory processes.

“Mater is working hard to improve the system’s performance as quickly as possible.”

The spokesman said they were addressing the issue of the convenient phone app.

“Mater is working with the system’s provider to improve the rendering of LIS results on mobile phones, as we understand this is more convenient for many of our specialists,” he said.

“Pathology results can be readily accessed on tablets and on computers, including those on wards and in operating theatres.”

Mater digital specialists and extra devices have been stationed in our hospitals to support the transition to a new system.

A 24/7 pathology hotline is available to support doctors and provide urgent access to test results.