[Editorial correction: The original title to this article identified the hospital involved as HB Hospital, in error, for which we apologise. This incident occurred at Palmerston North ED. The editorial observations remain valid.]
The husband of a long-time BayBuzz writer posted the following on Facebook this week …
“A real life story.
On Tuesday my wife collapsed at the place where we were staying during radiation treatment.
At ED we waited 12 hours in the hallway with the Note (holding bay when ED is working way over their limit) for a Dr to attend her.
Nurses helped to at least get pain. medication during the wait.
When wards opened I organized for a Dr from Oncology to come down to ED. Which they did, so from that we shifted to EDOA (a holding bay before you get a place on the ward). Stayed there at least another 8h before she got admitted to the ward.
On the ward I saw the image above or below.
The staff here doing ALL just such an amazing job in that hard environment.
I read the news that nurses can’t find a job. Public funding cut down by this government (while giving tax cuts to landlords who are really living a hard life).
Now David Seymour wants to privatize everything.
Without the help by all the taxpayers paying for a public healthcare system, I know the outlook for us in our situation would be horrific, as bad as it is already.
My tax, my money for health, education, aged care, the arts is money I don’t want to keep for myself, it is money I want to be shared to those that need it.
And if equality is the goal than get rid of a privately funded health system and then, David, wait with me for 12hours on ED. And we can talk about public funding.”
For New Zealand, the issue is First World versus Third World health care. Which do we want and whose arse needs to be kicked to get it?
Arguably, this is the issue more than Public versus Private. The practical reality is that to attract the people and capital required to meet our growing health care requirements, we need both, working in tandem.
This woman bravely battling multiple cancers – and every person like her – deserves so much more and better than she is presently offered by the NZ ‘system’.
Don’t expect much from new Health Minister Simeon Brown. As Transport Minister he showed no comprehension of or sympathy to transport programmes delivering major health promotion benefits, as described in this Newsroom article. There’s obviously an infrastructure and staffing side to improving health care in NZ, but equally, progress cannot be made without holistically addressing the social root causes of ill-health and investing in preventative measures.
Just to balance the writer’s experience, my recent admission to hospital was through a system that worked without a hitch.
I presented to our local health centre for after hours, speechless and unable write. I knew I’d had a stroke, so did my partner and the staff ordered an ambulance, triaged me, did the admission paperwork and sent my partner home. At the hospital, the stroke team got to work immediately arranged thrombolysing. After a weeks stay, I am making a good recovery at home with the community stroke team’s assistance.
The important take from this is Te Whato Ōra’s most valuable asset is frontline staff, it’s direct ought to be patient care, and therefore the money should go staff, their equipment, the understaffing problem, and their value.
My thanks to all who helped me so much.
For 7 years almost to the day I wrote a thesis on Napier, a city without a hospital. In 1997 HB had 816 beds. With a population 137000. We dropped to 365 beds, with only Gastings Nemirisk abs Royston our hospitals. WhokeHadtongshospitslis built on a river bed sny costs to upgrade the hospitsl cists exploded in 2003 due to th.e riverbed. Since then with population increasing over the years, Hastings hospital was under immense pressure, with ED overflowing, ghr eye clinic working in corridors, no air-condition in the wards, patients complained and nurses were given iceblicjs. The recent study deemed many, many of the areas in tge hospitsl were not fit for purpose . The management knew tge tower Block needs to be replaced. Nut they buokt a endicilogy unit, and upgraded thestres snd xray.
ED is suffering because of Napiers demise , of a over priced Dr’s emergency and no hospital beds.
So I studied to see what coukd be an alternative option for Napier a city that is doomed to gave a catastrophic event.
Both America and Australia operate on a hub and spoke model . Similar to what aystralua gas in the outback. Small efficient units close to the hospital. Apparently a hub and spoke model has limited highly qualified staff and once tge units are set up,it is cost effective.This was the answer for HB.. so I wrote to everyone ,politicians,mayors,DHB , great idea.
Proposed Gasttings woukd ve tge hub. Napuer and any other town ,city would be the spoke.
Hub wouldbe highly computerized to enable communication to tge spoke. The hub would be set up for soecislust services, intensive care,cardiac, eyes, endocology snd Ed.simw wards.
The spoke as in Napiers case Ed 24 hour service with no charge and able to do minor surgery. The unit woukd have beds fir 48 hour care, xray,chemist,etc.
Sounds perfect but it eoukd take the pressure off Hasringa and given Nspier a fully set up miniature medical facility.
In my thesis,I had slso mentioned her coukd be a catastrophic rbent where even ambulances , staff,couldn’t reach the digital as it dud with cyclone Gabrielke snd a fluid 2 years before that. I felt lije saying I told you so.
7 years on we are no where close to having any elected parrliamentaran Mayor, dhb,now health, look at Nspuers d3muse and Gastings pressure of a small inadequate facility to work in. The staff are amazing, but the hospital structure is old, worn out,long wards, itcwill not attract the most needed staff.
The politician and the mayor are to blanre they just don’t listen to common sense.
I too sat 8 hours in ed, twice there us no excuse but coukd be alleviated if Nspier gad a facility of its own. It’s not good enough.
“holistically addressing the social root causes of ill-health and investing in preventative measures”:
This is the bit that I never hear discussed publicly in any ‘public health’ resources or potential solutions discussions.
Whyever not? It’s the elephant in the room.
How smart is it to not address why people get sick and what preventive actions might help turn things around?
It’s a sad state of affairs I realise and NZ is not unique in underfunded healthcare. Easy to blame one govt when clearly our healthcare is years in the making to be so bad. I wish AI would get into gear as it will do the jobs that would free up essential frontline staff etc. I know there is ‘fears’ of AI taking over, in the current no staff world I guess we need to have robots even if we don’t know it yet.
So true Anna. No one speaks publicly about the elephant in the room – what are the root causes of so much sickness nowadays. Some people blame it on eating unhealthy food, lack of sleep and exercise (probably true too), some even blame it on climate change, but one thing we can be sure of it’s definitely not the elephant in the room …….. the side effects of mRNA injections!!! The injection of experimental gene serum into our blood stream could not possibly cause so much illness. Oh no no no…. !!
This writer is obviously a true “Leftie” more interested in condemning the Coalition than the actual problem!! I’ve been through A&E many times, and everytime I’ve had brilliant first class attn and service, by many unselfish persons who work all sorts of unsocial hours, I’m just grateful that is is available for us!!
ooohhh and please explain the TAX cuts that us Landlords received, I have not noticed any!! but I am grateful to this Government for reinstating the business expenses against income!!
On reading some of these comments…………. just reflecting on the excellent work of baybuz! With all its associated costs
…
Health is one of the pillars of our society demonstrating on a daily the pillar of “caring” important for all young and old.
Where is the outrage from those taking tax dollars and providing people with taxed paid services first off? Or just our leaders running the full gambit of Hawkes Bay.
We have the best Sports Park in New Zealand but the worst Hospital and the silence is deafening.
If you’re not convinced of the above statement ask the question to any Senior Medical Specialist in Hawkes Bay and you’ll hear how poor the treatment is that they’re able to provide to every human in the Hawkes Bay.