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"Inadequate care and no referral to specialist"

About: Fiona Stanley Hospital / Emergency Department

(as a relative),

I took my parent to ED at FSH last month. We waited almost 10 hours in the waiting room, and a further 5 hours before seen by a doctor.

My parent has an arterial blockage (75%) in their leg and had developed a purulent wound on the back on the same ankle following a potential sprain, complicated by diabetes. We asked for a vascular review as it was very worrying to have a wound where blood flow was restricted and there was a poor chance of healing, however we were told that that’s not an option via the public hospital as it was a chronic issue and we needed to go via the GP/wait for an appointment with a private vascular surgeon.

The wound was dressed and parent was given prophylactic Antibiotics, and told to see their GP for wound management. They went to their GP the following day (now non ambulant and in severe pain) who was horrified and said this was not able to be managed at the GP office and sent us straight back to ED.

Went to a private hospital and they were also horrified at the advice given at FSH. I feel like the treating doctor severely underestimated the severity of the situation and discharged my parent incorrectly. I believe my parent should have been seen by a vascular specialist in the very least. They also ended up having a sore between their toes that was not found if they were given a proper physical assessment. The staff were lovely but just missed some very obvious signs that further should have been done here. 

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Responses

Response from Luke Dix, Acting Executive Director, Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospital Group, South Metropolitan Health Service 2 weeks ago
Luke Dix
Acting Executive Director, Fiona Stanley Fremantle Hospital Group,
South Metropolitan Health Service
Submitted on 6/06/2025 at 10:58 AM
Published on Care Opinion Australia on 9/06/2025 at 8:57 AM


picture of Luke Dix

Hello Disappointed-relative,

Thank you for your feedback and we are sorry to hear about your experience at Fiona Stanley Hospital (FSH).

I apologise that your relative experienced long wait to access care in the FSH Emergency Department (ED); waiting in an ED for extended periods is frustrating and upsetting. The hospital has been experiencing a very high demand for beds, and this does impact on the time taken to pull patients from the waiting room into the department. The hospital is working on a number of initiatives to improve flow including a recent expansion of the ED.

Specialist referral can be made by the Emergency Department when assessed to be urgently required. I am sorry this did not happen on the occasion your relative visited the FSH ED.

To enable us to investigate what occurred from a clinical perspective for your relative I would encourage you to contact FSH Patient and Family Liaison (08) 6152 4013 or FSHFeedback@health.wa.gov.au.

Kind Regards

Luke Dix

Acting Executive Director

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