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"Unhelpful and abusive staff"

About: Ipswich Hospital / Emergency Department Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital

(as the patient),

I have spent years suffering a wide variety of symptoms due to chrone's, and some symptoms that are hard to explain. I had been under the care of a doctor, until recently. I was emotionally and verbally assaulted by this doctor, in front of the whole cube, and all his subordinates, due to the frustrating inability to help explain a long term complaint of severe abdominal spasms, continuous vomiting, and profuse perspiration. This abuse includes comments made by this doctor, and various other staff at the Royal Brisbane, and the Ipswich Hospital, that I'm a drug seeking addict, all my problems are in my head, and that I attend hospital to escape my life. When told by this doctor to go elsewhere, as he had seemed to have his fill of me, I said I already had a referral to the PA and that he was surplus to my requirements, he blew his top and went off even more. I have witnesses to multiple acts of abuse towards me. I've even suffered bruising from nursing staff as they have man handeled me from using showers in ER, as diversion therapy.

I believe I've been made the butt end of a long term running joke at the Ipswich ER, due to what I think is a lack of education, and uneducated assumptions about me. This treatment I have received by these hospitals have caused me to give up on any belief that there is any doctor out there that really cares, and will listen, understand, and attempt to help me, and not just worry about how my problems affect their success ratios. I am a decorated war vet, who served without thought of my own health and safety, and now when the effects of my service has caused me great suffering, I feel I am abandoned as a second rate citizen, not worth the effort, and not able to have any quality of life. I have also emailed a doctor at the Ipswich, with a recounting of my woes, as my main antagonists are located there, and have made my life such a misery, that I don't attend any hospital, I have no specialist, pain management, and no GP. I am on my own, in my own private hell, fashioned by the Royal Brisbane Hospital, i.e. the doctor from the Royal Brisbane, and then a select few of senior staff of the Ipswich ER. My quality of life is unbearable at most, and my feelings toward myself are questionable at best, as self-harm sometimes tops my list of remedies. Since I am unable to bring myself to such a cowards end, I'm just left with what I don't know, because it sure isn't a life. Thanks Qld Health and your authorised representatives.

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Responses

Response from District Coordinator Consumer Liaison, Performance Strategy Planning, WMHHS 11 years ago
Submitted on 3/04/2013 at 4:54 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 4:59 PM


Thank you for making contact and drawing to our attention the concerns you have with the treatment you have received at the Ipswich Hospital Emergency Department.

We are so very sorry to hear that you have been made to feel that your condition is not important to us, and that you have come away from our hospital feeling like you have no help available to you. We are very concerned about the treatment you described, and wish to do all we can to make sure you have the care and support you need.

Thank you for agreeing to allow us to make contact with you and organise the necessary support to address each of the concerns you have raised.

We will stay in contact and work with you to make sure you feel your issues have been heard and addressed to your satisfaction.

Consumer Liaison Service

West Moreton Hospital and Health Service

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Response from Care Opinion Australia 11 years ago
Submitted on 22/04/2013 at 3:33 PM
Published on Care Opinion at 3:35 PM


The following response has been posted by Patient Opinion on behalf of the Metro North Hospital and Health Service.

The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital has a Patient Liaison Service, to work closely with patients to investigate complaints.

The RBWH encourages all patients who have concerns to contact the Patient Liaison Service on email

RBWH-Patient_Liaison_Service@health.qld.gov.au

or telephone 07 3646 8216 so that any concerns can be investigated.

  • {{helpful}} {{helpful == 1 ? "person thinks" : "people think"}} this response is helpful

Update posted by Yank66 (the patient)

I think the above response by the Metro North Hospital and Health Service to be a typical response of avoidance of a real problem. I believe if in house procedure and chain of command worked, a public airing of concerns would not have been necessary. So now you have my complaint, in writing, what else do you need to make your enquiries? I will keep it under public scrutiny, as I believe that is the only way, so far, to get a good look at my symptoms, chrones related or not. I still suffer, and no matter how mad your senior staff may get, and call me names, and accuse of mental and drug seeking problems, only takes away from a real life concern for me. I live with it, and through it. I dare any of your so called experts to live just one of my most painful and sick days, and see if they would not fight tooth and nail for relief, at the least.

To read my response to WMHHS go to:

https://www.patientopinion.org.au/opinions/58744

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