The peak body for emergency medicine in Australia welcomes the findings in the Auditor-General's report into the state's four major hospitals' emergency departments, saying executive engagement with clinical leaders is critical to improving patient outcomes.
Australasian College for Emergency Medicine (ACEM) President Dr Simon Judkins said: "Our members have been outspoken in calling for leadership at the top of key hospitals to listen to their frontline workers about access block, with too many patients spending extraordinarily long periods in overcrowded emergency departments, in many cases, days, waiting for a bed on the wards. The Auditor General has highlighted the result of inaction – chronic bed block in the system and adverse patient outcomes.
"We know that the overcrowded conditions are resulting in substandard care as evidenced by the high rate of adverse events mentioned in the Auditor-General's report. In short, patients are suffering; Tasmanians deserve better."
Dr Judkins added: "The Auditor-General has pointed out the obvious: the problems lie outside of the emergency department and recommendations from previous reviews have not been implemented. Engaging clinical leaders in changes to address longstanding cultural and process weaknesses is vital to improving patients' health care."
ACEM Tasmania Faculty Chair Dr Marielle Ruigrok said: "Next month's Access Block Solutions Meeting must agree on immediate steps to improve the performance of Tasmania's health system, focused on leadership, accountability and reforms that support system wide capacity building across community, emergency department and hospital services."
Dr Judkins called for strengthened accountability measures to be introduced across hospitals. "As a matter of urgency, ACEM recommends that where a patient stays more than 24 hours in the emergency department, then the hospital CEO must report this to the Health Minister and conduct an incident review. But everyone working in THS must draw a line in the sand, understand that this is unacceptable and that they all have a role in ensuring this changes."
ACEM also eagerly awaits the final report of the Legislative Council's inquiry into acute health services in the state.
"Emergency department staff in Tasmania care deeply for the health and wellbeing of their patients. We need all leaders in the healthcare systems of this state to realise they need to step up and be accountable, as everybody who enters an emergency department deserves quality care from dedicated professionals, in a timely manner and with the greatest chance of positive outcomes," Dr Judkins said.
Background
ACEM is the peak body for emergency medicine in Australia and New Zealand, responsible for training emergency physicians and advancement of professional standards. www.acem.org.au
