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Access and security system

Posted By Carer1950

"Access and security system"

About: Bentley Hospital / Older Adult & Falls & Memory Clinics & Day Therapy Unit

(as a carer),

My darling spouse has been a patient in Bentley Hospital since late last year. They have dementia. I have been supporting them daily while they were in their care home. The care at the Older Adult Mental Health ward 10 has been very good. I found the medical and nursing staff are what you would expect in such a service.

Unfortunately, during this time of Covid, it seems communication is lacking from the hospital management staff.

I have been visiting/supporting my spouse every day since their admission. I have been advised, by ward staff, that my spouse is more comfortable and relaxed during my visits. These visits have been between early and late afternoon.

As I understand it, come 31 January 2022, the WA government has placed restrictions on visiting:

Visiting hours are only between 10:00am and 12 noon, or between 5:00pm and 7:00pm.

Visitors must be fully vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination daily to gain admission.

I can no longer visit in the afternoon. These visiting times seem to be incongruous to both visiting and normal operation of the hospital ward. When I arrive at 10am, my spouse is often being showered, dressed and medically treated. Lunch is served at 12noon and dinner at 5pm. My spouse takes about an hour to eat. Given that amount of time and patience, they will consume all of their meal. I do not wish to interrupt their meals – they are losing weight as it is.

When I left at 12noon, I believe the ward nursing staff were surprised that I was not allowed to be present during the afternoon. Very good communication in my opinion- not.

I recall the hospital policy is that a visitor must obtain an Approved Visitor clearance and associated wrist band every visit. I feel this clearance is to simply allow one to provide proof of vaccination. As I understand it, no RAT or other test is done. If you are vaccinated on day one, you will still be vaccinated on all following days. I have my three jabs but still must divert to the vaccination checker daily before I can see my spouse.

I always wear a KN95 mask but have been often told that I must change to a lower efficiency surgical mask. Recently, I was pleasantly surprised when a Ward 10 staff member rang someone and found out that the mask policy is meant to prevent the use of less efficient cloth masks.

I can understand when, upon me asking, many hospital staff members seem frustrated. I am too.

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Responses

Response from Grant Waterer, Acting Executive Director, Royal Perth Bentley Group 2 years ago
Grant Waterer
Acting Executive Director,
Royal Perth Bentley Group

Submitted on 10/02/2022 at 11:09 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 12:46 PM

picture of Grant Waterer

Dear Carer1950,

I am sorry to hear of the difficulties you are experiencing with the implementation of the Government’s most recent COVID-19 directions for hospitals. Timely communication is a challenge as WA responds to the evolving nature of the pandemic and I acknowledge the added complexities this creates for consumers and staff of health services.

The directions are to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and it is important the messaging is consistent across health settings. This will regrettably impact some people more than others as we work hard to maintain the safest possible environment in which to provide care to patients and ensure our duty of care to patients, visitors and staff.

I realise the importance of routine for people with dementia and it is unfortunate that, in your case, the current Government directions for visitors impacts on the time you spend with your loved one. I also recognise the added inconvenience for you to check in at each visit and the fact-checking often required with the implementation of any new Government directions. Please continue to speak with the ward staff if you have concerns or require further assistance.

I am pleased you hear you are happy with the care your loved one is receiving at Bentley and I know the staff involved will be encouraged by your kind words. I am proud of the hard-working staff who deliver safe and compassionate care.

Royal Perth Bentley Group staff will continue to partner with all our consumers and the community as we navigate the ongoing uncertainty of COVID-19 together. Thank you, I appreciate the opportunity to respond to the matters you have raised.

Kind Regards,

Dr Grant Waterer

A/Executive Director

Royal Perth Bentley Group

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

Update posted by Carer1950 (a carer)

Dear Dr Waterer,

Thank you for your prompt reply.

However, it is very hard to respond to you without seeming to be rude. Please believe me when I say that rudeness is not the purpose of this response.

I understand that, as a public servant, you must respond as per the governments guidelines. I do not want to argue whether these guidelines are right or wrong. I simply want to bring to your attention the impact that I believe these policies have on patients, relatives and your staff.

I feel you have responded with a series of platitudes. You have not specifically addressed any of my complaints/issues.

The main issues that I attempted to raise are:

1. The impracticality of the new mandated visiting hours. This is system wide not just for the dementia ward.

a. I have experienced that morning visits impacts upon the normal hospital operation. Also it reduces the duration for visits. Visiting time must necessarily be taken up in routine patient care.

b. 5pm to 7pm seriously impacts on patients dining/food intake and also reduces the available duration for visits. It also seriously impacts on visits by people after finishing work.

2. You refer to "Timely communication is a challenge as WA responds ..." but you do not address to my experiences of your staff not receiving good communication, even when the government issued their directions 48 hours before implementation.

a. your ward staff initially did not know that I had to go home at 12 noon and that I could no longer visit in the afternoon.

b. frequently over the past many days I have received conflicting advice regarding my wearing of a KN95 mask. You say that "The directions are to reduce the spread of COVID-19 and it is important the messaging is consistent across health settings". My experience is that there has been no consistent messaging.

You mention "I also recognise the added inconvenience for you to check in at each visit and the fact-checking often required with the implementation of any new Government directions." It seems to me you conveniently overlook that I am really commenting on the lack of real patient and hospital protection. I can tolerate the inconvenience, if there is a medically justified reason. I am fully vaccinated. I feel rechecking my vaccination status daily does not add to the patient and hospital protection.

I believe the same goes for some staff insisting on me wearing the inferior surgical mask when the KN95 mask provides better protection. Bearing in mind that your hospital does not check for Covid-19 positivity, I feel it is safer for all involved if I wear the best protection mask readily available.

Dr Waterer, the purpose of my initial posting was simply an attempt to be positive and reduce everyone's frustration. I have noticed your staff getting frustrated, more so as time goes on. An example of that is the ongoing frustration regarding mask usage. As I said "I was pleasantly surprised when a Ward 10 staff member rang someone and found out that the mask policy is meant to prevent the use of less efficient cloth masks." As I understand, no one else knows this.

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