More hospital beds close across NSW

By Dr. Ananya Mandal, MDJan 9 2011

Hospital beds on the mid-north coast will start closing from today as the staffing level issue continues. Coffs Harbour and Port Macquarie hospitals will have one in four beds closed. More hospitals in northern NSW will join in. Almost two-thirds of the beds closed at the Orange Base Hospital will not be re-opened for emergency care. Meetings will also be held with staff at Bathurst and Dubbo to decide if any beds will be closed. Thirty five beds have been shut in local hospitals so far, including at Blayney, Coonamble, Canowindra, Condobolin, Grenfell, Wellington and West Wyalong.

The action began in Victoria where nurses were demanding a nurse-to-patient ratio of one-to-four. According to Nurses Association organizer, Joanne McKeough, “We’re hoping that it will lead to the government taking very seriously our claim that the people of New South Wales deserve a safe level of care that will come about having nurse to patient ratios… What it means for the community is that certainly there will be delays, but no patient will be denied emergency care.” She went on to inform that beds will be closed in the surgical wards, operating theatres and mental health wards and the protest will continue until the government steps up. She added, “We’re nurses, our patient’s safety is upmost in our mind, so there will be no denying of care… The impacts to the community is that there could be delays but we believe the community knows that we are doing this for them.”

The Association’s Western Region Organiser, Linda Griffiths also said, “They [nurses] are devastated that this government is not listening to our requests for a one to four patient ratio… They can’t believe that after all these months the Association has attempted to negotiate with the government that we’ve got nowhere…They feel at Orange Base that they can’t provide the safe patient care that the community deserves.” Ms Griffiths also assured that patient safety will not be jeopardized saying, “Emergency care has continued even with all the beds closed that the government chooses to close around the state to save money… So those beds, those extra four beds the members have decided will be available for emergency care.”