Australian Medical association calls for new ICU beds in Hervey Bay, councillor flags TAFE campus as hospital site

The AMA has called for urgent changes to the Hervey Bay Hospital Intensive Care Unit as a councillor campaigns to rezone the nearby TAFE campus to meet critical health demands.

The Australian Medical Association has called for a state budget which promises a big health spend to include funding for Hervey Bay Hospital’s “stressed” ICU.

In a statement, AMAQ, together with the Australian Salaried Medical Officers Federation, called for action on the recommendations made in a review of the ICU.

ASMOFQ President Dr Hau Tan said the review was commissioned by WBHHS more than a year ago after it flagged concerns about bed numbers, patient care, workforce culture and hospital leadership.

“We need transparency and accountability to ensure all 25 recommendations are put into action as quickly as possible to improve the function, capacity and capability of the ICU,” Dr Tan said.

Some of the recommendations in the report included immediate funding for an extra two ICU beds, and more medical, nursing and administration staff in the ICU.

It comes as Fraser Coast Councillor David Lee pushes for the Hervey Bay TAFE campus to be rezoned and set aside as a future site for a new hospital.

He likened the recent hospital upgrades to “putting lipstick on a pig” and said there was never going to be enough space at the current hospital site for expansions to keep up with the growing, ageing population.

He believes the TAFE site makes sense due to its size and proximity to the existing Urraween health hub and hopes that as part of the council’s current town plan review, the TAFE could instead be relocated to the area near the university as part of the Pialba education precinct.

Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service (WBHHS) Chief Executive Debbie Carroll said she appreciated Mr Lee’s “passionate advocacy” on health matters and looked forward to working with councillors to ensure local development was appropriate for the level of primary and community health care support that was available in Hervey Bay.

“WBHHS has, and will continue, to make a significant investment in expanding local health services and capacity at the Hervey Bay Hospital site,” Ms Carroll said.

Councillor David Lee flags TAFE campus as a site for a new Hervey Bay Hospital. Photo: Stuart Fast.

Ms Carroll highlighted investments made in recent years including the hospital’s new emergency department, more inpatient beds, and the ongoing construction of the mental health unit.

“The new emergency department building includes shell space which was deliberately added to the project to provide the flexibility for Hervey Bay Hospital to continue to expand on the current site,” Ms Carroll said.

“Earlier this year our team also opened an additional ward at Maryborough Hospital increasing our Fraser Coast inpatient capacity which helps relieve pressure on Hervey Bay Hospital.”

Hervey Bay Hospital Emergency Department. Photo: Alistair Brightman.

In a statement, AMAQ President Dr Maria Boulton said the issues at Hervey Bay Hospital were reflected across the state.

“While we are pleased to see this review at Hervey Bay, we are tired of being proven right and want to see action,” Dr Boulton said.

“We hope to see major healthcare investment in next week’s state budget to increase hospital beds, address access block and reduce ramping.

“Our members and the community deserve to know what’s happening in their hospitals and also what’s being done to fix them so we are calling on Queensland Health and the State Government to publish this report and urgently deliver all the recommendations.”

Wide Bay Hospital and Health Service CEO Debbie Carroll. Photo: Supplied by WBHHS, Paul Beutel.

Ms Carroll said WBHHS started the external review following discussions with members of Hervey Bay Hospital’s ICU and ASMOFQ in September 2021.

She said after the review report was submitted to WBHHS Executive and Board in May, it was then provided to key senior medical staff in the ICU on May 30 and 31 with a “commitment to work together on key issues identified in the report”.

“That work is already beginning with our existing Hervey Bay Hospital ICU Review Action Plan being updated to incorporate the findings of the SER report,” she said.

“Our WBHHS team has also previously implemented an additional one ICU bed at Hervey Bay Hospital and will continue to work towards capacity improvements including working towards providing a second additional ICU bed, noting these are being considered alongside other service priorities.

“WBHHS looks forward to further positive news in this space and is disappointed ASMOFQ is commenting on information, that was provided transparently and in goodwill, from the SER report before there was any reasonable opportunity to enact on the recommendations or further discuss through the appropriate channels.”

Hervey Bay MP Adrian Tantari was contacted for comment but at the time of publication, a response had not been received.

Originally published as Australian Medical association calls for new ICU beds in Hervey Bay, councillor flags TAFE campus as hospital site