A patient transport lift at the Royal Hobart Hospital has been out of action for six months
The timeline to fix a broken patient transport lift at the Royal Hobart Hospital has been labelled “ridiculous nonsense”.
Tasmania
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A KEY patient transport lift at the Royal Hobart Hospital is due back in service by the end of the week, six months after it broke down with staff and a patient trapped inside.
In December fire fighters were called to the hospital to free an intensive care patient and accompanying medical staff from the lift when it stopped on a floor closed off due to the hospital redevelopment.
Staff at the hospital and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation have confirmed the lift has been out of action since that incident.
This has required staff to take seriously ill patients on a longer route and in a smaller service lift.
A spokesman for the Royal Hobart Hospital said the patient transport lift was due to be back in service on Friday.
He said the six month timeline for the repairs was due to the lift undergoing a full refurbishment – a process that would have been required anyway.
However independent Clark MHR Andrew Wilkie rubbished the explanation for the lengthy repair timeline.
“The Government’s explanation that repairs were always going to take six months is ridiculous nonsense from clowns who think they can get away with treating us like fools,” Mr Wilkie said.
“The public health system is a shambles and the Health Minister Michael Ferguson and Premier Will Hodgman are entirely to blame. Turns out they can’t even fix a busted lift. No wonder the health system is in crisis. This lift has been broken for six months, everyone’s known about it and no one in charge has cared.
“The fact is the Royal is being held together by not much more than the good will and expertise of staff in the complete absence of any genuine political support.”
Problems in the ageing hospital, such as lift failures, overcrowding, airconditioning breakdowns and water leaks have prompted calls for the State Government to start stage two of the RHH redevelopment as soon as possible.
State budget papers show $4.2 million out of an estimated total of $91.1 million will be spent on stage two of the redevelopment next financial year.
Funding for the project will increase in the following years with an estimated completion date in 2022.
Stage two will allow for an expanded emergency department and an expansion of the existing intensive care unit.
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