Ramsay Health Care Gold Coast region CEO Mark Page says response to coronavirus has boosted our healthcare reputation

While tourism has taken a temporary battering, the coronavirus crisis has massively enhanced the reputation of another growing Gold Coast industry.

EVEN as the physical threat of the COVID-19 crisis eases, our health workers are once again fighting on the frontline.

Except this time the patient in danger of flatlining is the economy. And the theatre of operations has changed from our public system to our private.

Ramsay Health Care Gold Coast region CEO Mark Page says although private hospitals took a back seat when it came to treating pandemic cases, they will be at the forefront when it comes to aiding the city’s economic recovery.

Mr Page says Ramsay alone is already one of the biggest private employers on the Gold Coast – operating Pindara, John Flynn and the Southport Private hospitals – and the addition of new equipment, technologies and development means the company is poised to boost the city’s reputation as a destination for medical tourism.

He says our response to the coronavirus crisis has only built on our position as a health leader.

“I think history will show people studying our response to this crisis,” he says.

“Australia’s health care system is one of the most respected globally. We have free access to a great public system as well as fast access to a wonderful private system. We really are the envy of other countries and the way we acted when this pandemic hit proves why.

Ramsay CEO Mark Page pictured at Pindara private hospital. Photograph: Jason O'Brien

“I’ve lived in seven different places in Australia, as well as around the world, and I can categorically say that we live in the best city in the best state in the best country in the world – and we have some of the best health care. Why wouldn’t you come here for treatment if you could?

“Out of the darkness of this crisis, I can see that our reputation as a destination for medical tourism will boom.

“Already we have people travelling from North Queensland and New South Wales, and our domestic patients will only grow.

“On top of that, given time and the easing of travel restrictions, I can see international patients from places like America choosing to come here. Our treatment is first-rate in a fully developed country, and even factoring in airfares, what we offer is affordable by comparison.

“Our health industry is the one to watch as we move out of this crisis, and we’re preparing for a lot of growth.”

His sentiments echo those of Federal Treasurer Josh Frydenberg, who this week indicated he wants private industry, rather than governments, to be the main drivers of jobs during the recovery.

Indeed, Deloitte’s latest quarterly Investment Monitor report released on Wednesday, shows that a smorgasbord of small-scale works spread across Australia rather than a few big road and rail projects mainly in Sydney and Melbourne will be the best way to climb out of an expected deep recession.

And Mr Page says Ramsay hospitals are already streets ahead.

He says Pindara was the first hospital in Australia to invest in a million-dollar Mazor X Stealth Edition robotic tool, and to perform surgery using the revolutionary equipment.

He says that tool alone will draw patients to the Gold Coast, alongside new imaging systems employed by the hospital, as well as the first private electro-convulsive therapy treatment for mental health patients at the Southport Private Hospital.

He says a major development has just been completed at John Flynn Private Hospital as part of the ‘POWER’ project, which will transform the facility to cater for an ongoing population boom in the southern Gold Coast and Northern Rivers regions.

The project development includes installation of a state-of-the-art PET scanner, which has the ability to detect cancers, heart disease and brain disorders, two new operating theatres, an additional 30-bed ward and seven new emergency bays.

New operating theatres and beds are also being planned for Pindara, as well as an extra 24 mental health beds at the Southport Private.

“In fact, the first spine surgery in Australia to use the Mazor X was successfully performed at Pindara, by spine surgeons Associate Professor Matthew Scott-Young and Assistant Professor Laurence McEntee,’’ he says.

“They used the robot to plan and guide more than 20 metal implants into the spine of a young woman who suffered from extreme scoliosis.

“Our plan is to continue investing in technologies like this.

“We want the Gold Coast to have the best of everything, and that certainly includes world class health care.

“Our city is growing up fast. We’ve come so far with our arts and cultural precincts, our restaurant and cafe culture, and our health industry can lead the way as well.

“Not only do our residents never need to leave the Gold Coast, but others will come here for this first-class experience.”

A sign directing visitors to a COVID-19 Clinic on the Gold Coast. Picture: AFP.

Mr Page says the coronavirus crisis only proved the health of the industry. He says even as elective surgeries were restricted during the worst of the pandemic, with his hospitals’ activity dropping by more than half, not one worker was stood down.

He says the consultation and communication between private and public systems showed both sides were firmly on the same team – the Gold Coast’s.

“Certainly being forced to cancel a lot of our elective surgeries was difficult, but I think we came through it really well,” he says.

“It was a tough decision for the Government to make but it was the right call for the time. We didn’t know how those coming weeks would look.

“Even though our activity dropped dramatically, no one needed to stand down.

“For one, we wanted to be ready to assist Queensland Health if the pandemic got out of hand, but also we wanted to use that time to increase our training and make contingency plans. I think we now stand in great stead for the next crisis if that were to ever eventuate. Hopefully not.

“Our staff and doctors have been amazing. No one flinched, even though I’m sure many of our staff would have been fearful for their jobs at the time. But they got on with what needed to be done and we were able to support them.

“We wanted to keep everyone employed, for their own sake, for the sake of our hospitals and for the sake of our city.

“Some people chose to take time off due to schooling commitments but no one has lost their job. Certainly their job might have looked different given the restrictions on what we were able to do, but they kept working and they kept getting paid.

“Now with more elective surgeries back on the schedule, we are keen to get back to full capacity when we are allowed to do so – and again, that’s not just for our workers but especially for our patients and also for our city.”

Mr Page says even as restrictions ease, there are some COVID-related changes that might remain.

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Mr Page says even as restrictions ease, there are some COVID-related changes that might remain.

He says being forced to reimagine the delivery of health treatments meant better accessibility for some patients.

“John Flynn Private Hospital has introduced antenatal classes via Zoom and that’s working really well. It’s an option that we may well keep. Mums who want to attend in person still can, but for some it’s much easier doing that online.

“I think this crisis really showed how much agility we can have and that there is continual room for improvement and reimagining options.

“It also reminds us how important our research facilities are. We’re not working on COVID-19 vaccines, but we are actively working on drug trials for lung cancer, breast cancer, bladder, liver and skin cancers and more.

“Not only is this work essential for future patients on the Gold Coast and around the world, but it also means that we can provide future work for scientists and doctors in our city. You don’t need to leave this city to be on the cutting edge of the industry.”

Mr Page says investing in the people of the Gold Coast is one of the best ways he can show his gratitude to the city and its workers during a difficult year.

“It sounds cliched, but after 25 years in the health system and 20 years with Ramsay, every day I am amazed by the clinical people and the work they do. Not just clinicians but all our staff, the cleaners, the admin … everyone stands up and does their part with empathy and without complaint.”

With this frontline, we should be well protected from a fiscal flatline.