Ballarat paramedics have reported patient wait times of up to 12 hours in ambulances outside of the Base Hospital's emergency department, leaving Triple Zero calls to be handled by crews as far as 70 kilometres away.
The reports, made to the Victorian Ambulance Union, demonstrate yet another example of the city’s healthcare system struggling with its caseload.
What’s happening: Ballarat’s Base Hospital has been in the headlines for months, with reports of extreme wait times, patient deaths while in these waiting rooms and severe pressure on staff as result.
In 2018, an upgrade of the hospital, originally projected to cost $461 million and since increased to $655 million, was announced by the Victorian Labor government.
The project is not due for completion until 2027. Until then, nurses, paramedics and other healthcare workers are having to work with what they have.
By the numbers: Emergency wait times at Ballarat Base Hospital are nearly double the statewide average, while quarterly statewide statistics show 70 percent of patients admitted to emergency departments that stayed for 24 hours were located in regional Victoria.
Backed up: Danny Hill, secretary for the Victorian Ambulance Union, said one consequence of the stretched healthcare resources and jammed emergency departments is patients being “ramped” in the back of an ambulance – often for four, nine, or even 12 hours – waiting for treatment.
When an entire fleet of ambulances is ramped, Triple Zero callouts will instead need to be managed by areas as far as Beaufort, Ballan and Bannockburn.
“Even metropolitan Melbourne,” said Hill, “we’ve had that happen.”
“While ambulances are ramped, the crews can’t get out and respond to members of their community. That can have a life or death outcome.”
🏥 The nurses: Staff inside the hospital are feeling the pressure too.
Maddy Harradence is the secretary of the Victorian branch of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF). She said staff have reported concerns about the waiting times and an unsafe working environment, including instances of “corridor nursing”.
🗣️“ED nurse members at Ballarat Base Hospital are working incredibly hard to provide high-quality care to their patients and the psychological impact when that is compromised by unsafe staffing is significant,” she said.
The ANMF has raised concerns with Grampians Health about the ongoing risk to its members as well as patients, and has requested a working party be established to identify areas of concern and assist in planning for a safe and healthy working environment.
🚑 How do we fix it? Hill said he believes the issue is systemic, and that Ballarat’s population growth has increased faster than health services have been able to keep up.
“I have several examples where patients have deteriorated, gone into cardiac arrest when ramped, and teams have had to call for intensive care backup”, he said, adding that backup often comes in the form of additional ambulances as the hospital does not have staff to attend.
“In an overwhelmed system, you need more funding and you need more beds,” Hill said. “Health professionals need certain resources, and when they can’t do that the patient suffers.”
What next? The hospital upgrade is now in its final stage, which includes 100 more beds for short-stay treatment and a brand new emergency department. An interim solution has not been presented by the state government or Grampians Health.
Grampians Health told the Brolga the wintertime sees an increase in illnesses, and an ageing population creates more “complex health needs”. A spokesperson said staff across Ballarat and Horsham work “tirelessly to provide safe, high-quality care under challenging circumstances, and we are incredibly proud of the dedication, professionalism and compassion they show every day”.
🗣️“We are constantly working to improve care and hospital patient flow, and several initiatives have been undertaken to reduce wait times and streamline patient movement from the Emergency Department to wards and across the hospital.
Grampians Health encouraged patients to “familiarise themselves with the range of urgent care services available”.