Peter Gleeson: Mackay Hospital’s spectacular failings highlight woes that have beset Queensland Health

The spectacular failings at Mackay Hospital sum up the woes that have beset Queensland Health under the Labor government, writes Peter Gleeson.

Peer reviews are always precarious.

They rely on the reviewers to be brutally honest, to the point where they may offend their colleagues or peers.

Within big bureaucracies like health, which runs hospitals, it becomes almost impossible to get an accurate portrayal when Caesar is judging Caesar.

And so it goes with the recent spectacular failings at the Mackay Hospital and Health Service.

The findings of the recent inquiry into the Mackay hospital exposed management shortcomings which can only be described as appalling.

Inadequate care contributed to the deaths of three babies. Many women suffered lifelong physical and mental harm. Twenty-six women had below standard care and had been injured or harmed.

Mackay Base Hospital. Picture: Liam Kidston

Women told the inquiry investigators they were ignored, disrespected, neglected and left in pain by senior healthcare providers.

One of the babies to die was Nathan Beazley, whose life support was turned off four days after he was born in 2013.

Mackay Hospital has admitted to inadequate obstetric care that caused harm to both Nathan and his mum Jessica Beazley.

Four clinicians have been referred to the office of the Health Ombudsman. The review looked at maternity outcomes between July, 2019 and October last year.

The issues identified spoke to a “problematic workplace culture at many different levels’’.

So what are we to make of a December 2018 appraisal of the Mackay Hospital and Health Service from the Australian Council of Health Care Standards?

The health service received the maximum four-year Certificate of Accreditation following a rigorous week-long visit by a team of surveyors. That accreditation runs out in eight weeks. Surely an extension is now impossible.

At the time, the hospital put out a statement saying people could be “reassured they were receiving first-class care at any of the health service’s facilities’’.

“These are rigorous standards that are recognised at a national level. Even though we are regional and rural hospitals, people can be reassured they are getting top-quality care,” the hospital said.

Queensland Health Minster Yvette D'Ath at the Mackay Base Hospital.

The Australian Council of Health Care Standards is an independent, not-for-profit organisation dedicated to improving quality in health care. The health service had to meet 15 standards spanning areas such as infection prevention, medication safety, clinical handover and blood product safety.

“Not only did we meet all of 15 standards, four areas were met with merit,” the hospital trumpeted.

The Mackay Institute of Research and Innovation, workforce planning and management and improvement of energy and water use were highlighted as significant achievements.

A team of 10 assessors from around Australia visited hospitals and community health centres in Mackay, Sarina, Bowen, Proserpine, Dysart, Clermont and Moranbah.

“The process is that the assessors physically visit the facilities and at the same time we provide evidence to show how we are meeting the standards,” said the hospital.

“This sends a clear message to the community that the Mackay Health Service’s management and staff are committed to excellence in healthcare with a strong and continuing focus on safety, quality and performance.’’

That last comment didn’t age well. It sums up the woes that have beset Queensland Health under the Labor government’s watch.

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These people are too busy congratulating themselves on how good a job they are doing, yet once you get down into the weeds, they are presiding over a healthcare system that is more at home in Zambia, than modern-day Queensland.

How could a so-called independent body give Mackay such a glowing report, only for it to be found to be catastrophically inaccurate?

Until a government – any government – starts sacking people at Queensland Health, the mediocrity and facade will continue.

Originally published as Peter Gleeson: Mackay Hospital’s spectacular failings highlight woes that have beset Queensland Health