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Care Opinion

If you don’t fight for your family you may not have one

Posted By circinusnt44

"If you don’t fight for your family you may not have one"

About: Newman Hospital / Emergency Department

(as the patient),

In my experience, Newman hospital overall ‘care’ is not what I can put has occurred for any of this what I feel really occurred is dismissal, inconsistencies, a black hole to ask for medical attention.

There are some ‘hero’s’ is this story but I feel they are few and far between.

But then I believe there are the ones who

Don’t listen

Put their hand and fingers through my infants bowel motion

Told me to shut up and I feel laugh behind my back

I feel in Newman and a vast majority of the Pilbara we are stuck in poorer (at best) health care

Newman hospital have no baby bath and I believe still do not

I recall the parents room was used for the Covid testing (despite pointing this out it did not change until the Covid testing room was no longer required. So baby changes were on the floor or pram or lap which post section was ‘amazing’.

Mental health issues (mainly, I believe, due to the hospitals apparent inability to see that their behaviour and dismissal is not only inappropriate but build anxiety and stress and mistrust).

When formal complaint are made there is a 30 day request to ‘let us work on it’.

15 weeks of asking to be heard for baby’s feeding and that they were aspirating met with ‘they’re fine’ to then find that you are right but now baby has a collapsed lower lobe. But I as the parent have to be kind. I’d like to run up and down the corridors and yell that I believe they were wrong. But apparently that’s not nice however dismissing concerns and allowing a baby to drown in their feed is?

I believe a formal letter to the board does nothing either what you receive is a ‘stock standard’ response

In my opinion, it is all WA county hell system and I feel they don’t give two cares.

I could write for hours and still not cover the toilet paper service but right now I’m processing the fact that I will be in to visit my partner soon after the response to ringing to check on them when I woke to feed our infant and make their formula. I asked ‘just ringing to check on my partner’ and the response I recall was ‘at 2 in the morning’ I said yes and was told my partner’s been asleep for their shift and unceremoniously hung up on - life is on a day and night schedule when you have babies and a family sick partner. It’s a do what needs to be done.

But I feel the rude the dismissal will be swept under the carpet as a phone call for assistance was made and already the apparent excuses for complete rudeness and lack of decency will be negated, which I believe was not considered till after the fact of deciding to act without common decency for a parent who is in a stressful situation - regardless of what is happening at the hospital a family of a patient called and in medicine I believe the first rule is meant to be ‘do no harm’.

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Responses

Response from Sarah Hennings, Operations Manager, Inland Pilbara, WA Country Health Service (WACHS) Pilbara 15 months ago
Sarah Hennings
Operations Manager, Inland Pilbara,
WA Country Health Service (WACHS) Pilbara

Manages the operations of health services located in Inland Pilbara

Submitted on 17/01/2023 at 10:02 AM
Published on Care Opinion at 10:03 AM

Dear circinusnt44

Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback.

I want to reassure you that the behaviours that you outline, such as an unwillingness to listen, using profane language and laughing at a healthcare consumer’s concerns, are not in alignment with the WACHS Values, Code of Conduct or the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights, and are not tolerated at the Newman Health Service (NHS). Where these issues are raised by patients or staff, they are taken very seriously and managed through the appropriate education or performance management pathways. To find out more about your rights and responsibilities as a healthcare consumer, you may like to access a copy of the Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights here.

I understand that several of the concerns you have raised in your Care Opinion Story have been previously addressed. In response to your new concerns, I am pleased to advise that we have purchased a baby bath and would like to thank you for bringing this to our attention. This will go a long way in providing comfort to the mothers and babies who are admitted to the NHS.

I acknowledge that the use of the family room for COVID-19 testing posed a challenge, particularly as you were in a delicate condition. Additional accommodation can be made available for patients in the two adjacent bathrooms. The NHS staff are always willing to help, and I hope that in future if you encounter a similar situation, you feel comfortable in raising your concerns, so that alternative accommodation can be arranged for you.

Where consumer complaints are received directly by the health service provider/emailed to our WACHS_Pilbara.Feedback@health.wa.gov.au, we are required to provide a formal response within 30 working days to comply with the Department of Health Complaints Management Policy. We do endeavour to provide responses prior to this time frame; however, this will depend on the complexity of the feedback and the investigation findings and outcomes.

I apologise that you found the communication abrupt upon ringing for a check-up for your partner and I have spoken to staff to stress the importance of compassionate and respectful care and communication. Please note, however, that it is against patient confidentiality to provide patient information over the phone. While I appreciate that you have multiple priorities, after business hours it is unusual for calls to be taken regarding patient status, particularly when the Emergency Department is busy; were a patient to deteriorate overnight, their next of kin would be notified as soon as possible.

If you are ever concerned that your or a loved one’s health is deteriorating while receiving care in a public hospital in the future, I would like to share with you a three-step process we have in place at NHS called Aishwarya’s CARE Call. This process is in place to ensure the nurses and doctors caring for you or a loved one are aware of any changes to your or a loved one’s health condition. For immediate assistance, you can make an Aishwarya’s CARE Call at NHS, and across hospitals in the Pilbara, by calling 1800 431 143.

I would like to reassure you of our commitment to providing the best possible service to all our patients and their families and carers and our willingness to address any problems or concerns.

I would also like to thank you, again, for taking the time to share your story, which will help us to improve the care we provide. Please feel free to continue providing your feedback via Care Opinion for any new concerns in the future.

Yours sincerely,

Sarah Hennings

Operations Manager Inland

WA Country Health Service (WACHS) Pilbara

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