"A call for accountability and compassion"

I am writing this not just as a patient, but as a person who has fought hard for their health — and who is now fighting to be treated with basic dignity and respect.

Several weeks ago, major incisional hernia repair surgery (post colorectal surgery 2022) at Monash Health Dandenong Hospital was cancelled the day prior. More recently, Bass Coast Health  Wonthaggi Hospital cancelled 30 minutes prior to intake for double mastectomy (2024) repair surgery. The most recent cancellation happened while I was on my way to the hospital — an experience that left me angry, deeply exhausted, and emotionally crushed.

The reason given? There simply wasn’t a bed available. After all the preparation, planning, fasting, and emotional build-up, I was turned away. I understand even my surgeon was very disappointed as they had travelled from Melbourne with their team and a surgical theatre now left vacant — and I believe that says a lot about how avoidable and poorly managed this situation was.

On both occasions, I had to rally my support network and gather emotional strength, all while living with complex comorbidities including recent treatment for breast cancer. I’m an older person — not elderly, but someone who is already managing significant health challenges and living in constant distress due to my condition.

Bass Coast Health (or Monash Health for that matter) states its vision is to provide “safe, effective, person-centred care that improves health outcomes and experiences.” My recent experience has been the exact opposite. There was nothing safe, effective, or person-centred about being left in limbo twice, with little regard for the personal impact or planning needed on my end.

This is more than just an administrative hiccup — in my opinion, it’s a serious failure in operational planning and patient care. I understand pressures on the system, but this should not be the patient’s burden to bear.

Bass Coast Health — I believe your actions have fallen short of your own standards. I feel you need to urgently review how elective procedures are scheduled and ensure that patients, especially those with complex medical backgrounds, are not subjected to this kind of repeated feelings of trauma.

I hope this message reaches the right ears and leads to real change — not just for me, but for every patient who deserves to be treated with care and respect.