At a passionate but restrained meeting on Friday, Save Our Hospital (formerly Save Pambula Hospital) spokesperson Frankie J Holden at one stage told GSAHS eastern sector general manager Ken Barnett that “all problems are fixable”.

“The problem we face as a lobbying group is that we go to the minister and he hides behind you guys and we go to you and you hide behind the minister and say we can’t do anything because our hands are tied,” Mr Holden said.

“So where do we go; how do we improve the situation?

“Why are nurses leaving the industry, why are they demoralised?

“Somebody should be asking these questions and you have the ear of people further up the chain than we do so I‘d like to see these question being asked on a state and national basis.

“I don’t buy that it’s a lack of funds. While we have the money to blow $10 million on fireworks on the Sydney Harbour Bridge, we don’t have a money problem.

“It’s a matter of resources and political proprieties and that’s why I want you to get a sense of our frustration.

“You have to accept this as much as we do and agitate for a better system

“Don’t put up with second rate; don’t say there a resource problem - fix the resource problem, it’s all fixable.”

The meeting, chaired by Bega Valley Shire mayor, Cr Tony Allen, and attended by councillors, was held to present further information on a series of questions from the group about medical services at Pambula and Bega hospitals and to answer questions.

The main focus was on the implementation of recommendations from the independent assessment of Bega Valley Maternity Services (see Friday’s issue) but there was a distinct difference of opinions on what had actually been achieved.

The report stated that 12 of the 13 recommendations had been implemented, a figure hotly disputed by the hospital group.

“We would refute that 12 out of 13 has been accomplished,” Save Our Hospital activist Sharon Tapscott said.

“There has been a lot of fluffing around the edges of the core issues (about) doctors and hasn’t been covered very well at all.

“Taking away the reliance on locum doctors hasn’t happened and that would probably have to be the core issue.

“We want our doctors delivering our babies and we want post-natal beds that are post-natal beds, not surgical beds that have been morphed to compensate.

“So those sorts of realities haven’t been addressed to our satisfaction and while they are to your satisfaction, you are not the one lying in a maternity bed.

“So on behalf of all the women in the Bega Valley Shire three maternity beds and two loaned beds from surgical ward is not ideal.”

Dr Frank Simonson took up the attack on GSAHS and said taking the 12 points one by one it was clear “it just doesn’t measure up”.

“It says that beds should be dedicated to the obstetric service with the three delivery suites used only for delivery and dedicated post-natal beds… and you haven’t done that,” he said.

“If (patients) are lucky enough to get one of those (three) rooms that’s fine otherwise you have to deliver your baby in the recovery room and you have a curtain separating you from the next patient and if unlucky enough to be in a surgical bed you have the problem of a patient recovering from an operation at the same time you are trying to care for your baby.

“You have not met that and it was an important recommendation.”

Cr Allen interrupted Dr Simonsen and said that the maternity issue would not be resolved at that time, to which Ms Tapscott said, “We won’t solve it but we need to establish the accuracy of the information”.

Cr Allen moved to the next question of physiotherapy at Pambula, which Mr Barnett said will soon increase to two positions.

Mr Barnett then addressed the topic of ophthalmology services and the extension of surgery list at the hospital.

“(Ophthalmology) has been unfortunately delayed but interviews have been arranged for next month and so we would hope to have a successful candidate shortly thereafter,” he said.

“There has been no extension of surgical list. We have spoken to surgeons about increasing their list at Pambula but we haven’t been able to make that happen at this stage.”

Many issues that had been discussed before were also raised including locum costs and GP obstetricians at Bega, to which Mr Barnett said there were none until July when Dr Salisbury returned.

Mr Holden asked if Mr Barnett could see the irony in women going past the Pambula Hospital when there were doctors there who could service it.

Mr Barnett replied that was only part of the issue, the other being staff and the difficulty attracting permanent as well as locum staff, both midwives and theatre staff.

Ms Tapscott asked if locum nurses could be attracted to Bega why could locum midwives not be attracted to Pambula.

“My dilemma is that Bega Hospital is under pressure…and you are taking people past a fully-functional hospital to an already over worked and stressed situation,” she said.

Mr Barnett replied: “We’ve done this a million times Sharon and you are just not going to like what we say”.

“Basically, it is incredibly difficult to run two services 20 minutes apart given the resources we have,” he said.

“The report has been tested many, many times up to the minister’s level and the decision (for one service) has stood.

“It was basically impossible to keep both services running on a day-to-day basis with the amount of staff.

“It was not sustainable and it was unsafe.”

Mr Holden said while the group knew it was a challenge “we are asking you and the government to rise to the challenge”.

“Health is the most important thing in human existence.

“Sure it’s a challenge but rise to the challenge don’t just cut and say it’s too hard and say those people down there can suffer.”

Cr Pat Campbell asked if the Pambula doctors could fill gaps at Bega Hospital, to which Mr Barnett replied that discussions had taken place and those doctors had said they “were not in a position to do that” but he added “we will always be happy to revisit that (with the doctors) and to try and find a way around the problems”.

Cr Campbell also asked about the status of the new hospital

“I can only tell you what has been said publically, that we are continuing to do detailed planning for the new facility,” Mr Barnett said.

“Our advice and instruction funding received has been to get to the formal design. We should acquire land and we should be at a point to go to tender when the government says we can proceed.”

After the meeting Mr Barnett said he understood there were some differences in opinions on the issues but that “from our perspective we will keep saying what we have done and why we have done it”.

“We will continue to look at ways to improve the maternity services in the Bega Valley and the appointment of a new director of maternity services should help stabilise that.

“We will keep working to try and recruit doctors but it must be said the small pool of locums are doing a good job under the circumstances.

“We look forward to more productive meetings with the group.”

Mr Holden said he thought that while the meeting was good “the issues won’t be resolved in one or two meetings”.

“There needs to be ongoing consultation with GSAHS because the more they see the human beings behind the figures, the better off they are,” he said.

“We made some valuable points and I think they walked away thinking that we have some legitimate concerns.

“I think they could see why we are so upset and why there is so much community anger.

‘I’m looking forward to working more closely with them and having some real consultation.”

All parties agreed to meet again in three months.