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Medical Imaging

Posted By statusww79

"Medical Imaging"

About: Sale Hospital / Medical Imaging

(as a service user),

Upon discharge from special care nursery, we were given a referral for an ultrasound for our child’s hips at 6 weeks and informed that it had been sent to medical imaging and they will call us with an appointment time. 3 weeks pass and we heard nothing, I called medical imaging to confirm the referral and get an appointment time. I was informed that they do not call us with appointments, we have to call them. The next appointment they can get us in for is way past the 6 weeks and we were advised to call LRH or BRHS as they will be able to get us in for an ultrasound. 

We called both hospitals and they are also unable to get us in, we made appointments with them anyway, something we weren’t offered when I first called CGHS. 

We called CGHS medical imaging department again and had to call 3 times, each time the phone ringing for over 4 minutes. On the third call, we were finally answered. 

The person we spoke to got our child's last name wrong even after asking for it multiple times and couldn’t find them or the referral due to that. The next available appointment is when our child is 10 weeks old. Which we feel is disappointing considering our child's referral is to rule out DDH, and the treatment is time sensitive. 

As I understand it, 6 week ultrasounds for paediatrics are relatively common, and I think it is a wonder that there aren’t a certain number of appointments saved for these patients due to the time sensitivity of treatment.  

When we asked about being on a cancellation list/wait list to potentially get our child's ultrasound sooner, we were informed there wasn’t one. 

This is also curious as when I was pregnant, I called up regarding a late obstetric ultrasound and got an appointment within an hour of calling. 

Ultimately, in my opinion, this isn’t good enough from the primary medical provider within the Wellington Shire. 

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Responses

Response from Simon Waixel, Practice Manager, Medical Imaging, Central Gippsland Health about a year and a half ago
Simon Waixel
Practice Manager, Medical Imaging,
Central Gippsland Health

Submitted on 31/10/2022 at 6:59 PM
Published on Care Opinion on 1/11/2022 at 11:36 AM

Dear statusww79

Thank you for sharing your experience in relation to our Medical Imaging service.

My name is Simon Waixel and I’m the Practice Manager of this department.

We have recently had a change to our booking procedure in relation to patients taking control of their referral, rather than the GP or Medical Imaging service. This allows patients the flexibility to call and make an appointment at their convenience.

However, we are still able to make bookings if referrals are sent to us from the referring doctor. I will provide our booking staff with your feedback to remind them of the importance of demonstrating understanding and support when patients call regarding their appointment status.

I understand your frustration with the length of time it can take to access an appointment for Ultrasound. We are currently experiencing a shortage of Sonographers, despite extensive recruitment efforts, which can impact on the timeliness of appointments. CGH holds urgent appointment times for patients who need to be seen immediately - generally the referring doctor contacts us to advise of the urgency. It is unclear why you were not added to our cancellation list in the event that an appointment might become available, and I will follow this up with our booking staff.

If you would like to discuss your experience in more detail, or contribute further to the improvements we are making, I would be very happy to hear from you and can be contacted at simon.waixel@cghs.com.au or on (03) 5143 8374.

Kind Regards

Simon

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Response from Nadarajah Ramesh, Interim Director Medical Services, Executive, Central Gippsland Health about a year and a half ago
We are preparing to make a change
Nadarajah Ramesh
Interim Director Medical Services, Executive,
Central Gippsland Health

Submitted on 14/11/2022 at 10:17 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 11:01 AM

Dear statusww79

My name is Dr Nadarajah Ramesh and I am the Interim Director Medical Services at Central Gippsland Health.

Thank you for telling us about your experience with our Medical Imaging department. We are genuinely sorry to hear of what occurred, and the challenge you encountered in scheduling an ultrasound appointment for your child.

As the Practice Manager of the Department has already indicated in his response to you, one of the critical factors impacting on our ability to provide timely appointments for patients is the lack of Sonographers, which is a challenge most health services are experiencing at present. We are doing all that we can to recruit additional staff to strengthen this service for our community.

In relation to the telephone issues you describe (having to call 3 times, with lengthy wait times of over 4 minutes each), we are currently working to resolve a system issue that is impacting on the telephone service in the Medical Imaging department specifically. Please accept our apologies for the inconvenience caused and be assured that we are aware of the issue and working to correct it as soon as possible.

If there are further supports we can provide you at this time, please feel free to contact me at Nadarajah.ramesh@cghs.com.au or on (03) 5143 8700.

Kind Regards

Dr Ramesh

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