"Negligence"

Dear branzb65,

Thank you for taking the time to write about your experience.

I would like to offer my apologies that the perception of your care at Swan Hill District Health was one of negligence and incompetence.

Covid places increasing layers of complexities on the way health care staff provide care to all patients, and even further when the patient has a known positive test result.

When I read your feedback I recognised that staff had escalated to me your presentation the day after your transfer, and had informed me of the situation and how complex it was, and what occurred on that day.

When I first read your story I was worried that our ED and maternity teams were not communicating clearly with each other, and that you didn’t get a clear understanding of what was being organised. What I have discovered was there was a large and multidisciplinary, multi-agency team of health professionals involved in your care from Swan Hill to Bendigo and the Royal Women’s Hospital, as well as PIPER (Perinatal Emergency Retrieval). Midwives, Nurses, and specialty Doctors were all working together to provide the best care for you on this day. These people were all working together in the background to get you to Melbourne for the urgent scan that you required.

Because Covid restricts the number of people who were directly caring for you, this may have appeared that your presenting condition was not taken seriously, however I assure you that it was being actioned behind the scenes.

I am sorry that it wasn’t made clear to you that the staff heard your concerns and were working together to get you to the best place to receive your care. I have identified that it was not clear to you that going home was only until your review in Melbourne could be rescheduled for you to get the specialty appointment.

I am sorry that your experience in your local hospital was one where you didn’t feel like you were listened to, and that you felt like no one helped.

I would be more than happy to discuss this further or provide any more details. I can be contacted on ckeogh@shdh.org.au, or 50339250.

Kind regards

Chloe Keogh

Dear branzb65,

Thank you for getting in touch with me directly.

Again, I would like to apologise for the care you received during your time in our Emergency Department.

I have spoken to the team in the Emergency Department and the Maternity Unit about providing care for covid positive patients who have complex health issues during the pandemic. Communication is key in this.

Thank you again for writing about your experience in our Emergency Department. We will continue to work on improving our processes and how we listen to the patients and how we communicate with the patients who we are caring for.

Kind Regards

Chloe