UP to 10 palliative care beds for public patients on Brisbane’s southside have recently been lost from Canossa Private Hospital, despite ongoing protests.
Now Queensland’s new LNP Government is being challenged to make good on a pre-election promise to ensure the beds return.
The beds left the Oxley-based hospital to be relocated at Nathan’s QEII Hospital in March this year.
Initially the public beds were to be moved in February 2011. However, the Government’s contract with Canossa was extended as delays occurred in the readiness of the QEII palliative care facility.
At the time protesters feared that, in the changeover period, dying Queenslanders could be forced into emergency departments and acute medical wards to be attended by staff with inadequate training.
Concerns were also raised of a shortfall of palliative care beds on Brisbane’s southside.
Palliative Care Queensland (PCQ) chief executive officer John-Paul Kristensen said the closing of the public beds at Canossa, despite their relocation at QEII, still left Brisbane’s southside behind the national benchmark of 6.7 palliative care beds per 100,000 people.
Canossa’s chief executive officer Robynne Kent said the hospital soon would be contacting new Health Minister Lawrence Springborg to remind him of a pre-election commitment made by then Opposition Health spokesman Mark McArdle.
“In late 2010, when Canossa’s contract was first mooted to be cancelled, a group of about 100 people protested here,” she said.
“I was standing right beside Mark McArdle on the lawn at Canossa when he stated we would have public palliative care units both here and at QEII if the LNP gained power.”
Brisbane man Tom King, one of those involved in protests held in the hospital grounds, has written to his local Member of Parliament and the Health Minister to convey his concern at the situation.
“I saw how marvellously treated some of my old mates were by Canossa’s caring Sisters and civilian staff,” he said.
“I know other friends of mine are concerned also.
“This was a wonderful service which didn’t discriminate and cared for people whether they were Catholic or not.
“For example, I saw a Baptist chaplain attending to someone in an adjacent bed to one of my friends.
“It just doesn’t make sense to have public palliative beds closing down at this time.
“Predictions are there will be an increase not a decrease in the need for this service with an ageing population.”
Ms Kent said it was “Canossa’s hope the new Government will consider reopening public beds to make up for ones we’ve lost”.
“At the moment, there are no in-hospital palliative care services for public patients in western suburbs until Ipswich.
“We’ll certainly be contacting the new Government for a visit by the Health Minister in the coming weeks once things have settled down after the election.”
Mr Kristensen said PCQ considered the closure of any palliative care beds a problem, given southside Brisbane was well below the national benchmark.
“At the moment there are 10 such beds at the Mater, 10 at QEII, eight at Logan and six at Wynnum,” he said.
“The accepted level won’t be reached until the opening of 10 palliative care beds at Redlands Hospital in a couple of years.”
