Stephen Bennett calls on Bundaberg Hospital to release staff survey results

The Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service says the results of its staff survey were ‘strong’ after Burnett LNP MP Stephen Bennett called on the executive to publicly release the results. Read the story, vote in our poll:

Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service Chief Executive Debbie Carroll said the 2022 staff survey had showed ‘strong results’.

It comes after Burnett LNP MP Stephen Bennett called on the WBHHS to release the results of the most recent Bundaberg Hospital staff survey.

The call followed serious allegations of malpractice and patient ‘drugging’ levelled at the hospital.

Complaints against the hospital from former staff included a cleaner who won an appeal after her job was not made permanent, and a woman who claimed she was forced out of her role as a clinical coach.

Mr Bennett said the staff survey would reveal the true nature of the culture, behaviour, performance and accountability problems at the hospital.

“After years of trying to cover up problems, it’s understood the WBHHS has finally conducted a staff survey, but now it’s time for the results to be made public,” he said.

“The Board Chair and CEO owe it to the staff to be transparent, stop the secrecy, and start trying to fix the endemic issues about culture, behaviour, performance and accountability.”

WBHHS CEO Debbie Carroll said Bundaberg Hospital would not release the survey results to the public.

“While it would be inappropriate to publicly release a confidential survey, there were strong results in staff stating WBHHS was a great place to work with a positive culture and good teamwork,” Ms Carroll said.

“There were also strong results in staff indicating they had positive relationships with their colleagues, were satisfied with their direct manager and that WBHHS met or truly met its organisational values.

“WBHHS is reviewing the findings to determine what steps need to be taken as part of our commitment to nurturing and supporting the wellbeing of our staff.

“Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service is committed to nurturing and supporting the wellbeing

of our staff.

“Our organisational values of collaboration, accountability, respect, excellence and through patients’ eyes were implemented in 2020 based on what our staff and consumers identified were important to them.

“WBHHS also engages an independent provider to confidentially survey our staff to capture a true reflection of the views of employees across the organisation. This survey was conducted in 2022 and in 2019.”

Mr Bennett said it had taken four years to call out the WBHHS executives on their “failed” 2018-2022 strategic plan and four years for a staff survey to be conducted.

Burnett LNP MP Stephen Bennett has called for the results of a staff survey of a regional hospital to be released.

“These issues were highlighted four years ago in a key deliverable that was never achieved,” he said.

“This was the plan that only saw two out of seven goals reached before it was swept aside to make way for a newplan with new goals and deliverables.”

Mr Bennett said the WBHHS 2018-2022 Strategic Plan stated that by 2022 it will have created a workplace culture that supported positive and respectful behaviour, high performance, accountability and customer service.

The key component in delivering those core values was to ensure proper staff engagement, he said.

“After four years a survey has finally been conducted, but it needs to be made public. Only then will we know the truth.

“The hard working doctors, nurses and staff at the Bundaberg Base Hospital deserve better. They deserve truth and transparency.”

Ms Carroll said WBHHS have continued to meet their values for staff and patients under their strategic plan.

“Developing values that had meaning to our staff and consumers was part of meeting our strategic directions under our 2018-2022 Strategic Plan,” she said.

“Our WBHHS organisational values are now embedded as part of the development plans of our staff members to ensure how we all work reflects the values that our staff developed.

“Our staff are also regularly surveyed, including through Queensland Health surveys and the Working for Queensland Survey, to ensure we’re collaborating with them to make our health service a great place to work and to ensure we’re delivering quality, patient-centred care.

“In fact, our next Working for Queensland Survey will occur during September.”

Originally published as Stephen Bennett calls on Bundaberg Hospital to release staff survey results