Lift malfunctions highlight ageing infrastructure at Royal Hobart Hospital, nurses union says

The nurses’ union says mechanical breakdowns at the Royal Hobart Hospital have placed added pressure on staff at the already overburdened site.

Ageing infrastructure is causing problems at the Royal Hobart Hospital. Picture: MATT THOMPSON

THE nurses’ union says lift breakdowns at the Royal Hobart Hospital have raised pressure on already stressed staff.

The Mercury is aware of two recent failures of patient transport lifts at the RHH, including an incident last month where an intensive care patient and accompanying medical staff were freed by the Tasmania Fire Service.

Another patient transport lift connecting the emergency department with theatres failed on Monday and has since been fixed, the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation has confirmed.

A spokesman for the Tasmanian Health Service confirmed that the Fire Service attended a recent lift breakdown, after the lift became stuck on a floor that had been closed off to the lift as part of renovations at the hospital.

“As with lifts in any building, from time to time they can experience mechanical issues. If a lift is out of service for any reason, including maintenance, a contingency plan is put in place to ensure any possible impact on patients is minimised until the lift is returned to service,” the spokesman said.

ANMF state secretary Emily Shepherd said the lift breakdowns put further pressure on a hospital already operating at maximum capacity.

“It highlights the fact that the infrastructure within the existing building of the Royal Hobart Hospital is certainly ageing,” Ms Shepherd said.

“Clearly the breakdowns of two major lifts for use for patients’ transport are concerning. When the Royal is at level four escalation [peak demand], being able to effectively and efficiently transport patients safely is a priority.”

Ms Shepherd said the lift breakdowns highlighted the need for the State Government to commit funding to fix the rest of the hospital beyond the scope of the current $689 million phase of redevelopment.

“We would also call on the Tasmanian Government to urgently provide funding to stage two of the Royal Hobart Hospital redevelopment. There is a lot of work going on strategically on what is required ... once the decant occurs to K Block towards the end of this year, it would be obviously easier to have funding there ready to go.”