Last week Beryl McGrath-Smith was told by her doctor that she needed a mammogram and to ring SERH to arrange an urgent appointment. Just the week prior, the Local Health District had trumpeted its new breast screening service at SERH having secured equipment and a BreastScreen NSW radiographer for three days a week.

However, when Ms McGrath-Smith phoned the radiology department she was told there was no breast screening service available and that having a mammogram wasn’t possible. 

“They told me it might be up and running in a couple of weeks but at that time they had no radiographer and suggested I phone Bega Radiology in Canning Street,” Ms McGrath-Smith said.

When she phoned she was told they did not have the capability either and she was told to try Moruya Hospital. However, Moruya Hospital had no appointments available for about two weeks and Ms McGrath-Smith was concerned about the wait.

“It’s an urgent thing not just a scan and so I decided that I would have to drive to Canberra to get it done,” she said. An appointment was made for her within a matter of days at Woden.

“This is my health and I feel strongly about it. I’m not prepared to take this lying down; it’s not a fair system,” Ms McGrath-Smith said.

A spokeswoman for the Local Health District said that there was definitely a service available and a radiographer three days a week.

However, it would appear that despite sending out information to the local newspapers, somehow SERH has not ensured that its staff know about the newly available service.

Fairfax understands that Mrs McGrath-Smith’s case is not an isolated one and that another local woman has also been given incorrect information over the phone.