COVID-19 Update: Northern NSW 16 November 2021

 

As at 8pm on 16 November 2021 there have now been 177 confirmed COVID-19 cases across the 7 local government arears within the Northern NSW Local Health District since 13 September 2021 when the Delta Variant Outbreal first reached Northern NSW reached .

A total of 64 of these confirmed COVID-19 infections (36.15 per cent of all Northern NSW cases since 13 September 2021) have been recorded in the first 16 days since NSW Premier & Liberal MP for Epping Dominic Perrottet opened up Northern NSW to Greater Sydney, interstate & overseas travellers. That is equivalent to 4 new COVID-19 infections a day.

CONFIRMED LOCALLY ACQUIRED COVID-19 CASE LOCATION BREAKDOWN IN NORTHEN NSW BETWEEN 13 SEPTEMBER & 16 NOVEMBER 2021:

Tweed Shire - 7 cases + 2 infections contracted elsewhere in NSW

Byron Bay - 7 cases + 2 confirmed infections within the LGA not entered into NNSWLHD records as these individuals were no longer in the region.

Ballina - 15 cases

Kyogle - 22 cases

Richmond Valley - 25 cases + 1 case confirmed on 10 Nov 2021 where infection was contracted overseas

Lismore City - 42 cases

Clarence Valley - 59 cases.

AS of 14 November 2021 the fully vaccinated rate for the 16 years old to 90 years and over resident population in Northern NSW was:

Tweed Shire – 83.3%

Byron Bay – 78.7%

Ballina – 92.6%

Kyogle – 84.9%

Richmond Valley – 86.4%

Lismore City – 86.2%

Clarence Valley – 89.2%

Equivalent of 5 people a day are falling ill with COVID-19 in Northern NSW since NSW Premier Perrottet lifted public health order restrictions on travel into the region

By now North Coast Voices readers would be aware that 5 of the 7 local government areas in Northern NSW had been effectively COVID-19 free until after 13 September 2021 when the SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant entered the region from Greater Sydney and community transmission began.

Up until then these 5 LGAs having only had overseas travellers and other visitors test positive to the virus before they left the area without infecting local residents. 

The 6^th and 7^th LGAs were the outliers – one recording two presumed locally acquired COVID-19 cases on the same day in July 2021 which did not lead to local infection spread and, the other recording three separate presumed locally acquired cases between March 2020 and June 2021 – again not leading to infection spread.  

With those exceptions, from 25 January 2020 up to that Monday morning in September 2021, the region had experienced no community transmission of the COVID-19 virus within a population of est. 307,047 men, women and children.

The global pandemic was seemingly passing by without calling in. Until Morrison and Berejiklian insisted that rural and regional communities should be forced to 'live with COVID' just as their metropolitan cousins did.

As of 8pm on Friday 12 November 2021 according to NSW Health there have been 171 confirmed COVID-19 cases in Northern NSW Local Health District in the 60 days since the Delta Variant Outbreak reached the region.  At least 170 of these confirmed cases were the result of community infection now within the region.

A total of 58 of these confirmed COVID-19 infections (33.91 per cent of all Northern NSW cases since 13 September 2021) have been recorded in the first 12 days since NSW Premier & Liberal MP for Epping Dominic Perrottet opened up Northern NSW to Greater Sydney, interstate & overseas travellers.

That figure is roughly equivalent to 5 people a day falling ill with COVID-19 since 1 November 2021.

THE CONFIRMED LOCALLY ACQUIRED COVID-19 CASE LOCATION BREAKDOWN IN NORTHEN NSW BETWEEN 13 SEPTEMBER & 12 NOVEMBER 2021 APPEARS TO BE:

Tweed Shire - 7 cases + 2 infections contracted elsewhere in NSW

Byron Bay - 7 cases + 2 confirmed infections within the LGA not entered into NNSWLHD records as these individuals were no longer in the region.

Ballina - 14 cases

Kyogle - 21 cases

Richmond Valley - 25 cases + 1 case confirmed on 10 Nov 2021 where infection was contracted overseas

Lismore City - 40 cases

Clarence Valley - 57 cases.

COVID-19 State of Play in North-East NSW: Venues of Concern growing & a Sydney-centric vaccination myth annoys

 

Echo Net Daily, 2 October 2021:

The Northern NSW Local Health District has been notified of new venues of concern associated with confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the region.

NNSWLHD says that a anyone who attended the following venues at the times listed are considered a casual contact and must get tested and isolate until they get a negative result.

NNSWLHD Venues of Concern, Saturday October updated 9.18pm.

If you are directed to get tested for COVID-19 or self-isolate at any time, you must follow the rules given to you by Health staff, whether or not the venue or exposure setting is listed on the NSW Health website.

Echo NetDaily, 29 September 2021:

Byron’s vaccination coverage is 20 per cent below the rest of NSW and it needs to lift – quickly. Political and health leaders suggest ‘vaccine hesitancy’ as the problem, but the main issue has been vaccine supply. With thousands of Byron Shire adults not due to receive a first COVID vaccine dose until October, creative solutions – and a greater sense of urgency – are needed to get us ahead of what’s coming.

The recent Shire-wide lockdown resulted from just one Sydney traveller visiting a few Byron shops on her trip from Ballina Airport to Kingscliff. The travel was permitted, but the retail therapy was not. The traveller later tested positive for COVID, and within hours more than 100,000 of us were back in a snap seven-day lockdown.

The whiplash-inducing hard shift from ‘mostly-open’ to ‘mostly-closed’ is a regional NSW peculiarity designed to protect places like ours that have been largely COVID-free, but which also have below-average vaccination rates. Byron Shire has the second lowest first dose vaccination rate in NSW today – an extraordinary 20 per cent below the State average.

If you watched any of the daily COVID updates recently, Byron’s low vaccination rate – and what that means for the October statewide reopening plans and regional travel – is finally getting attention in Sydney. But there’s something a bit off. The questions lead with an assumption of why the vaccination rate is trailing; an assumption that respondents are too willing to reaffirm.

Take this example from 22 September:

Interviewer: ‘What’s the strategy to get the vaccination rate up in Byron Bay, Mullumbimby…?’

NSW Premier: ‘Well as I said, unfortunately there are pockets of resistance… And even if you don’t care about the safety of those around you… And even if you don’t care about your community, I think people are looking forward to doing things we haven’t been able to do for a while, and I think that’s a big incentive. But as we know there will always be pockets of resistance, but we are trying to identify those communities that legitimately have lower vaccination rates, it might be access issues… and as you know we have done incredibly well as a state considering the lumpiness of the supply we have received… it’s been a challenge for us to make sure it gets to the right places… I know there are some regional communities that are slightly behind the state average and we are trying to increase those as quickly as we can.’

Wow. That’s as unsubtle as it gets. Let me translate: There are a handful of places with legitimately low vaccination rates (problems the government is working hard to fix!), and then there are places like Byron where the rate is illegitimately low owing to the selfish (in)actions of some…..

NSW Health, Northern NSW Local Health District, VENUES OF UPDATE, 20 September 2021

NSW Health, Northern NSW Local Health District, UPDATE, 20 September 2021:

Following further investigations, Northern NSW Local Health District is clarifying a venue of concern associated with a confirmed case of COVID-19 in the region.

Anyone who attended the following venue at the times listed is a close contact and must get tested and isolate for 14 days since they were there, regardless of the result. NSW Health sends a text message to people who have checked in at close-contact venues with further information.

Suburb           Site            Address Date and time

Goonellabah  Lismore Workers Sports Club  202 Oliver Ave  14 September 10.35am -11.50am

A previously reported venue, the Lismore Workers Club in Keen Street, Lismore is not considered a close contact location, and anyone who had been at that location does not need to get tested or self-isolate.

Anyone who develops symptoms of COVID-19 is asked to come forward for testing as soon as possible and self-isolate until they receive a negative result.

Please continue to check this page regularly, as the list of venues of concern and relevant health advice are being updated as new cases emerge and investigations continue.

There are more than 500 COVID-19 testing locations across NSW, many of which are open seven days a week. To find your nearest clinic visit COVID-19 testing clinics or contact your GP.

Janelle Saffin goes to bat for not one but two electorates in order to put a dedicated specialist Parkinson's nurse on Northern NSW Local Health District's agenda

 

Office of the NSW Labor MLA for Lismore Janelle Saffin, media release, 2 September 2021:

CO-PATRONS: Lismore Parkinson’s Support Group Convenor Di Lymbury, right, with the group’s co-patrons Jenny Dowell OAM and Lismore MP Janelle Saffin.

LISMORE MP Janelle Saffin has welcomed confirmation that the Northern NSW Local Health District is considering establishing a specialist Parkinson’s nurse in Lismore to provide services to the Lismore and Clarence Valley communities.

Ms Saffin, who is co-patron of the Lismore Parkinson’s Support Group, from day one has strongly lobbied the Government and NSW Health to base a specialist nurse locally to meet growing demand from support group members and for other residents newly diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.

“I have been working closely with Lismore Parkinson’s Support Group Convenor Di Lymbury and others to provide this extra level of care and support to improve the quality of life for local residents living with Parkinson’s,” Ms Saffin said.

“I lobbied NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard and Northern NSW LHD Chief Executive Wayne Jones, and welcomed Treasurer Dominic Perrottet’s $8.6 million Budget package over four years, which includes funding to boost the number of specialist nurses statewide.”

Ms Saffin said she was encouraged by advice provided by NSW Parliamentary Secretary for Health James Griffin to Di Lymbury that Northern NSW LHD Acting Chief Executive Lynne Weir will consider using the new funding to establish a specialist Parkinson’s nurse in Lismore.

Mr Griffin told the support group that the LHD recognised the clinical benefits and improved outcomes for people with Parkinson’s disease that the existing specialist nurse position at Tweed Heads had provided.

“Ms Weir acknowledges it is difficult to access medical specialist neurology services in rural areas due to limited number of these specialists working outside the metropolitan area,” Mr Griffin wrote.

“The LHD is focused on developing support and clinical care for people with Parkinson’s through specialist clinics with geriatricians.

“The LHD also provides services, such as allied health, through the brain injury and spinal cord service, which supports people with Parkinson’s to maintain their function and independence,” Mr Griffin wrote.

Ms Saffin said she very much looked forward to the formal appointment of a specialist nurse based out of Lismore and viewed it as a major win for the Lismore Parkinson’s Support Group and the wider community.

“The sooner this happens, the better,” Ms Saffin.

Northern Rivers health staff to finally begin receiving COVID-19 vaccinations from this week

 

Northern NSW Local Health District, media release, 15 March 2021:

The Northern NSW Local Health District will start providing COVID-19 vaccinations to its staff from Wednesday 17 March, 2021.

“It’s an exciting milestone for our District, as we start to bring our local clinics on board as part of the NSW Health vaccination program to protect our staff and vulnerable residents from COVID-19,” Chief Executive, Wayne Jones, said.

Northern NSW Local Health District will commence three COVID-19 vaccination clinics at Lismore Base Hospital on 17 March, The Tweed Hospital on 19 March and Grafton Base Hospital on 22 March.

In the coming weeks, outreach clinics will also begin operating at the Multi-Purpose Sites at Bonalbo, Nimbin, Kyogle and Urbenville.

Initially, the clinics will provide vaccines for health staff, residential aged care residents, and local Ambulance personnel.

The clinics will use the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, which requires people to receive two vaccinations approximately 12 weeks apart.

“It’s extremely exciting to know that almost 12 months to the day after our very first case of COVID-19 in Northern NSW, we are now able to administer a vaccine which will enable our communities to be protected from the most severe effects of the disease,” Mr Jones said.

The first COVID-19 case was recorded in the Northern NSW Local Health District on 16 March 2020, and there have been 68 cases among residents to date.

“I also need to thank our extremely hard-working health staff who have been supporting our community and our health service in every aspect of the pandemic response. Standing up the vaccine clinics so quickly is another example of the outstanding commitment of our dedicated staff,” Mr Jones said.

Members of the public can check the Australian Government’s online vaccine eligibility checker to see which group they are in, and when they will be likely to receive the vaccine.

More information on the COVID-19 vaccination rollout in NSW is available on the NSW Health website.

How NSW Northern Rivers hospitals are coping with COVID-19 restrictions backlog of elective surgeries

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted on Australian public hospitals with regard to elective surgery and the impact played out thus......

Australian Government, Australian Institute of Health & Welfare:

In terms of elective surgery, following a decision by National Cabinet, restrictions applied to selected elective surgeries from 26 March 2020 including:

• Temporary suspensions of all urgency Category 3 procedures and selected urgency Category 2 procedures.

• No restrictions applied to Category 1 procedures and exceptional Category 2 procedures.

• Similar restrictions on elective surgery were in place through the private sector.

On 16 September 2020 The Sydney Morning Herald reported that:

NSW's elective surgery waiting list has blown out to more than 100,000 patients that will take at least six months to clear after national cabinet's moratorium on non-urgent operations triggered an unprecedented backlog.

A staggering 10,563 patients were overdue for their elective surgeries on June 30, nearly 20-times the number of overdue patients on the same day in 2019, the latest Bureau of Health Information report shows.

Operating theatres are running at up to 115 per cent their pre-COVID activity levels to get through the state's waiting list that hit 101,026 patients on June 30 – a 20 per cent jump (an additional 16,896 patients) compared to June 30 last year.

Patients needing cataract surgeries, total hip replacements, and ear, nose and throat surgeries were waiting up to 55 days beyond the clinically recommended timeframe, the report released on Wednesday showed…..

More than 10,500 people were waiting for knee or hip replacements at the end of September, according to the quarterly Bureau of Health Information report, up more than 22 per cent from the same time in 2019.

According to NSW Health Care Quarterly, Trend Report of September 2020:

July to September 2020 had the largest number of patients on the waiting list for urgent and semi-urgent procedures of any quarter over five years.

The number of patients on the waiting list for nonurgent procedures was up 30.0% (17,803) over five years, from 59,319 in July to September 2015, to 77,122 in July to September 2020. However, it decreased from its highest level in April to June 2020.

By 9 December 2020 The Sydney Morning Herald was reporting that:

Orthopaedic surgeries were not only running behind, with 27 per cent occurring later than clinically recommended, but also had larger than usual wait lists at the end of September, up 21.3 per cent for knee replacements and 25.6 per cent for hip replacements compared to 2019. Usually on-schedule eye surgeries were also hit hard.

On 19 February 2021 elective surgery wait times were again in the news:

Waiting for elective surgery can be a postcode lottery in NSW, with waits as long as 375 days at some country hospitals but just days in the city.

So how are public hospitals in the Northern NSW Local Health District faring?

Given that this health district has a significant retiree population, by way of example I looked at three elective surgeries which appear to occur with relative frequency in older people.

PUBLIC HOSPITAL ELECTIVE SURGERY MEDIAN WAITING TIMES IN NORTH-EAST NSW

Lismore Base Hospital:

Hip Replacement - the median wait was 83 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 127 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 102 days.

Total knee replacement - the median wait was 150 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 229 days by 2016-17 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 142 days.

Currently Lismore Base Hospital patients tops the state for the longest wait for knee replacement - a median 375 days - with 63 per cent of patients waiting more than a year. 

Shoulder joint replacement - the median wait was 14 days in 2016-17 and blew out to 16 days by 2018-19 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 14 days.

Ophthalmology - the median wait was 323 days in 2011-12 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 341 days, the highest median waiting time in the last nine financial years.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 1,360 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

Grafton Base Hospital:

Hip replacement - the median wait was 6 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 77 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 67 days.

Total knee replacement - the median wait was 10 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 145 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 135 days.

Shoulder joint replacement - the wait was 8 days in 2016-17 and blew out to 11 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at less than 5 days.

Ophthalmology - the median wait was 285 days in 2011-12 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 326 days, the highest median waiting time in the last nine financial years.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 652 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

The Tweed Hospital:

Hip Replacement - the median wait was 65 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 130 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 119 days.

Total knee replacement - the median wait was 114 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 201 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 197 days.

Shoulder joint replacement - the median wait was 24 days in 2016-17 and blew out to 28 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 22 days.

Ophthalmology - no patients listed between 2011-12 and 2019-20.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 1,084 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

Murwillumbah District Hospital:

Hip Replacement - the median wait was 39 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 48 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 30 days.

Total knee replacement - the wait was 53 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 59 days by 2017-18 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 30 days.

Shoulder joint replacement - the median wait was less than 5 days in 2019-20.

Ophthalmology - the median wait was 323 days in 2011-12 and blew out to 336 days by 2014-15 and latest figures for 2019-20 stand at 128 days.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 438 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

Casino & District Memorial Hospital:

Performs limited orthopaedic procedures predominately as day surgery.

Does not currently perform ophthalmology surgery.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 252 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

Maclean District Hospital:

Provides a small number of elective orthopaedic list procedures once a month.

Does not currently perform ophthalmology surgery.

Between July and September 2020 no elective surgery of any type occurred.

Ballina District Hospital:

Does not currently perform orthopaedic or ophthalmology surgery.

Between July and September 2020 a total of 307 unspecified elective surgery procedures were performed.

Byron Central Hospital:

Does not currently perform orthopaedic or ophthalmology surgery.

Kyogle, Bonalbo, Nimbin and Urbenville Multi-Purpose Services:

Do not currently perform surgery.

NOTE:

All statistics were found at the Australian Institute of Health & Welfare.

COVID-19 cases quickly climbing in the NSW Northern Rivers region

COVID-19 infection rose from 7 to 17 cases within a 24 hour period in the NSW Northern Rivers region. Total number of cases now stands at 22 individuals.

Northern NSW Local Health District (NNLHD), media release, 24 March 2020:

10 new cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed within the Northern NSW Local Health District (NNSWLHD) since our last update, bringing the District’s total to 17 cases.

The Public Health Unit is in the process of contacting close contacts, and investigations are underway to determine the sources of these cases.

The confirmed cases to date are spread across the length of the Local Health District, from Clarence right up to the Tweed Valley.

We’d like to thank those who have been cooperating with our Public Health Officers to date, working with our staff and self-isolating correctly at home.

We can’t emphasise enough how important it is for all our community to heed the advice of authorities in efforts to slow the transmission of the virus.

It’s critical to adhere to self-isolation guidelines if you’ve been instructed by health authorities or mandated to quarantine as a result of overseas travel.

For general members of the public, the most important things you can do at the moment are:

• practising good hygiene – hand washing or sanitising, and coughing/sneezing into a tissue which you then discard
• staying at home if you’re sick
• minimising close contact with others by following the social distancing measures.

It’s also important to remember that locations where cases live, work or have visited don’t pose an ongoing risk to members of the public. If you are considered a close contact of a confirmed case, a Health officer will contact you directly.

COVID-19/flu clinics
COVID-19/flu clinics are established at The Tweed Hospital, Lismore Base Hospital and Grafton Base Hospital, open from 10am to 6pm daily.

These clinics are for those most at risk with respiratory symptoms or fever, those returning from overseas or in contact with a COVID-19 case, or people like our health workers. It is vital that these respiratory clinics are not overwhelmed with people who are not in the high risk groups, which could result in delays identifying those most vulnerable. People without symptoms do not need to be tested.

The symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, headache, runny nose, or shortness of breath. Anyone with symptoms should isolate themselves from others.

Identification and isolation of contacts is a critical measure that limits the spread of COVID-19. Compliance with self-isolation by all contacts and returned travellers is essential.

When social distancing actions are combined with good personal hygiene measures the spread of an epidemic through the community can be slowed.

This helps protect the most vulnerable members of the community. It also reduces the impact of the epidemic on essential, life-saving health services by reducing the size of the peak of the epidemic so health services can continue to provide high quality care to all patients.

Everybody must play their part.

For advice and information about COVID-19 visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/Infectious/diseases/Pages/coronavirus.aspx

Northern NSW Local Health District (NNLHD), media release, excerpt, 26 March 2020:

As at 8pm Wednesday 25 March there were five new confirmed cases of COVID-19 in residents of the Northern NSW Local Health District. This brings the District’s total to 22.

The new cases are:

• Case 18 – currently not residing in Northern NSW LHD, in home isolation
• Case 19 – in home isolation after returning from overseas
• Case 20 – in home isolation after returning from overseas
• Case 21 – in home isolation, source currently being investigated
• Case 22 – in home isolation, source currently being investigated

The Public Health Unit is following up close contacts of cases who are located within NNSWLHD, who are being asked to self-isolate for 14 days from last contact with the confirmed case.

They will be contacted daily to check that they are well and anyone who develops COVID-19 symptoms will be tested for the virus.

If you are considered a close contact of a confirmed case, a Health officer will contact you directly.

 The cases for NNSWLHD include:

• 15 overseas acquired cases
• 2 contacts of a confirmed case/ or in a known cluster
• 2 contact not identified
• 3 under investigation – source unknown

Of these previous 17 cases, 14 are currently in self-isolation at home and two are in hospital. One person is considered to have recovered.

Northern NSW Local Health Area backs down for now - but Lower Clarence communities are closely watching for any move which will effectively reduce available bed space at Maclean District Hospital

The Daily Examiner, 6 March 2020: 

The decision by the Northern NSW Local Health Area to back away from plans to reconfigure the wards of Maclean District Hospital represents a win for the people, and a new opportunity for the community of Maclean to have a greater say in their beloved hospital. 

In an announcement made on Wednesday, NNSWLHD chief executive Wayne Jones said the Maclean Community Advisory Group would be established to help steer future decisions on the hospital, which is what they should have done in the first place, rather than ram through unpopular changes without adequate community and staff consultations. 

I sincerely believe the NNSWLHD Board underestimated just how hard the Maclean community were prepared to fight for their hospital. 

Community meetings, petitions and even a march were all planned and organised in no time to fight against the changes....

BACKGROUND

Click on: Two public meetings revealed that patient comfort & care at Maclean District Hospital is being downgraded and Lower Clarence Valley residents are not happy

Two public meetings revealed that patient comfort & care at Maclean District Hospital is being downgraded and Lower Clarence Valley residents are not happy

Maclean District Hospital
Image: Clarence Valley Independent, 26 February 2020

Two community meetings were called in the Maclean, NSW, concerning changes to the Level 3 Rural 43-bed Maclean District Hospital (established 1885) which services communities in the Lower Clarence Valley and the holidaymakers who flock in large numbers to Clarence coastal towns and villages.

The first meeting was called by the NSW Midwives and Nurses Association for 6pm on Thursday, 27 February 2020.

However, apparently having realised it had not fully consulted with the community, Northern NSW Local Health District quickly called its own community meeting which it scheduled a day earlier - from 3.30pm to 5pm on Wednesday, 26 February.

Readers should note the timing of this local health district meeting - it conveniently knocked out concerned residents who worked on that day as well as nursing staff who were doing shift handovers during that time period. Thus reducing community scrutiny of what heath officials said at this meeting.

The Clarence Valley Independent reported that this meeting's intention was "to counter the misinformation in the community and reassure them that the services at the hospital are not being reduced".

The Daily Examiner, 29 February 2020: 

Maclean voices opposition to hospital reconfiguration 
Fight is on for hospital 

The real costs of the proposed reconfiguration of Maclean District Hospital were laid bare to a full house on Thursday night as opposition grows to the plans announced by Northern NSW Local Health District..... 

Both the union members and community involved expressed their frustration at the NNSWLHD plan for Maclean District Hospital to move the 14-bed acute section on Level 2 downstairs into a combined subacute and acute 33-bed ward on Level 1. 

The vacant upstairs level of the hospital would be used for peak times in a “surge” capacity only. 

NSW NMA Clarence Valley branch vice-president Narelle Robison outlined some of the concerns raised by their members over the proposal, such as reduced bathroom and bed numbers. 

“(Nurses) may find themselves sponging people that are capable of having showers with assistance and maybe even panning people when toilets are full,” Ms Robison said. 

“Yes, it has been mentioned that we’ve managed before with those few bathrooms in years gone by but just because we have done it before does not make it acceptable in 2020. “There will be reduced single rooms and two-bed areas and they would need to be prioritised for infectious patients or those that are immunosuppressed and to our palliative patients. 

“With this in mind, there will be a higher chance of a palliative patient, end stage of life, receiving nursing care in a four-bedded room. 

“Our patients deserve better than this. It’s 2020 and this is not acceptable. “All patients who enter the public health system deserve to be afforded quality care and have their dignity respected and maintained as a bare minimum.” 

Australian Paramedics Union delegate Tim McEwan said nothing in healthcare happened in isolation and a ­reconfiguration of the hospital would have flow-on effects. 

“What’s going to happen is that when paramedics transport someone to Maclean hospital and that patient is unwell enough to require admission, if there are less beds than what there are now in Maclean hospital they’re going to have to be transferred to another facility,” he said. 

“The majority of the time for acutely unwell patients it is NSW Ambulance that does that transport. Not only do we respond to 000 emergency calls, we do transports between health facilities.

“If you’re unfortunate enough to have one of us ­attend when you need transport to hospital, what you’re likely to experience after this reconfiguration is a delay ­getting off the stretcher and on to one of the few beds at ­Maclean emergency department and while that’s happened we’re with you for every minute you’re waiting there and we’re unable to respond to other emergencies in the community.”

The Daily Examiner, 28 February 2020:

The largest roar from the crowd came after repeated questioning from Patrick Morgan, who stated he was looking to become part of the community. 

Not satisfied with the first response to his question, he pushed back, asking what the actual dollar figure would be saved by the new plan. 

“You wouldn’t be going to this trouble if there wasn’t a pot of money at the end that you were hoping to achieve,” he said. 

“How much are the opinions of this room worth?” 

“It’s about $150,000,” Ms Weir said. 

“Is that all?” came the reply chorused through the room.

NSW HEALTH, Northern NSW Local Health District, 13 February 2020:

Community Information regarding Maclean District Hospital [with my red annotations]

Q: Are beds closing at Maclean District Hospital? 
A: No. We are consolidating patients and staff into one ward, while the other ward will remain available for ‘surge’ capacity in times of peak activity. This ward reconfiguration will continue to deliver high-quality patient care, as well as maximise the use of existing hospital resources and space. 

According to the NSWMNA (as reported in the Clarence Valley Independent) in the planned merging of the Acute Ward, with the Sub-acute and Rehabilitation wards, one-third of the present available beds are being lost. 

In practice this loss would represent the total 14 available bed spaces on a closed Level 2 and, the crowding of 43 beds into a Level 1 floor area which would only comfortably hold 29 beds.

Q: What does ‘surge’ capacity mean? 
A: Surge capacity, or surge beds, are additional beds, which become available if there is high demand at the hospital. 

Q: Are the services at Maclean District Hospital changing? 
A: No. There are no changes to any services provided at the hospital. As with any hospital stay, patients are admitted to the appropriate facility and ward based on the level of care and treatment they require. 

The NSW Nationals MP for Clarence, Chris Gulaptis, was quoted in the Clarence Valley Independent as stating he has been “reassured” the hospital would not be disadvantaged by the proposed changes. 

Local readers might remember that Mr. Gulaptis has a track record littered with failed assurances from his masters in Sydney. Gulaptis did not attend either community meeting citing a need to be in Macquarie Street.

Q: Are staff being laid off? 
A: No. There will be no loss of jobs. All nurses will transfer to the reconfigured ward. Two substantive positions will be affected by the change, and the hospital is talking with these staff about opportunities to work elsewhere in the hospital. 

Q: Will patients continue to receive the level of care they need? 
A: Yes. The hospital is increasing the Nursing Hours Per Patient Day (the number of nursing hours available for each patient) and are recruiting additional staff to support this increase.

Again, according to the NSWMNA, there will be no Acute Ward. Level 2 will be closed, including the est. 7 toilet/showers on this floor.

On Level 1, there will be the existing 10-bed Rehab facility, consisting of five 2-bed rooms with ensuites. 

All other patients, whether they be Acute, Sub-Acute, Palliative Care or Infectious will be placed in the remaining four 4-bed rooms, three 2-bed rooms and one single bed (with ensuite) on Level 1. 

For these 23 patients they will be sharing a toilet/shower between 4.4 patients. This ratio is more than double that of the present Acute ward. 

Q: Is Maclean District Hospital closing? 
A: No. There are no plans to close Maclean District Hospital. We value the ongoing role that Maclean District Hospital plays in the Clarence Health Service and our public health system, and our staff play an essential role in caring for this community. 

Q: Is consultation occurring with staff and Unions? 
A: Yes. Hospital management have met with staff this week, and will continue these discussions over the coming weeks. Northern NSW Local Health District will meet with the NSW Nurses & Midwives Association soon to discuss the changes.