How to end ramping overnight
PUBLIC HEALTHCARE
AS a retired doctor with many years of experience in hospital medicine and more than 30 years in general practice in three countries, I can see one solution to our overloaded Royal Hobart Hospital with ambulances ramped awaiting attention. Australia has exceptionally well-trained GPs competent to deal with a large percentage of patients presenting at accident and emergency departments.
The reason patients go to the accident and emergency department is that it is free and the cost of running a high-quality general practice makes it impossible to bulk-bill all comers. Almost since Medicare started, the government has undervalued a GP consultation and has required patients to meet ever increasing costs. Medical practices with a large proportion of socially disadvantaged patients struggle to meet the costs of providing bulk-billing even to pensioners and children. Every time this matter has been raised by the profession with successive health ministers the response has been unhelpful.
If the Medicare rebate for GP services was reasonable, overloading of hospitals would end overnight and the accident and emergency departments would be able to deal promptly with major trauma. have crews to spare, when we sometimes cannot even find a driver? As we found with Bass and Braddon during the Federal election, the North always seems to get the attention, while the needs of Southern Tasmania are ignored. There are few Liberal MPs based in Hobart, and of those, only Speaker Sue Hickey seems to display any real compassion and concern for the many shortcomings in our health and emergency services.
Costing lives
FORMER emergency physician Dr Bryan Walpole gives an excellent critique into the state of our health system (”Integration is academic”, Mercury, July 25). His knowledge, expertise and extensive experience in the field of medicine should really be taken on board by the Tasmanian Health Service and I totally agree with Dr Walpole that a change in ministers will not be the solution to addressing the major problems and in our health system that ultimately is costing lives. she was transferred to Calvary l Lenah Valley. While not underestimating the immense workload and evident administrative woes of our health system, it is with awe we saw the dedicated staff able to deliver an outcome, let alone a good outcome, amid the feeble politics of funding. We thank all the good people who helped us immensely, including Dr Scott Mackie and the nurses, especially Amy and Nigel. We were overwhelmed to receive two warm and friendly visitors from our accommodation. We are forever grateful. What a beautiful place is Tasmania. What great city is Hobart and how fantastically magnificent you people truly are.
Public health a victim
AS the Royal Hobart Hospital seems to lapse into a coma in regards to being able to do its job, the Federal Government is cutting taxes yet more deeply. I suggest there is a correlation between our lack of proper public healthcare and the Liberal Party’s Victorian-age ideology forced on western nations since Thatcher and Reagan began creating inequality and poverty in the UK and US. Our taxes pay for health, public schools, pensions and our politicians’ generous salaries, allowances and superannuation. Parties bribe us every three years with tax cuts and we suckers fall for it every time. The UK has seen an increasing divide between the few who have and the many who have not, to the point where homeless get hounded out of shelter they have found for the night. Will this be our future? What has happened to the “fair go” so long ago promised by the Liberal Party under John Howard?
Passenger switch
VERY amusing suggestion from reader Esther Groarke promoting the one-way trip into space for Boris, Vlad, Kim and Donald (“Leaders on a mission,” Letters, July 24)! However, a much better balance would be giving tickets too to Hillary, Penny, Julia, and Lisa Wilkinson.
A different trio
READER M. Ross is probably right about the trio of Bo Jo, Sco Mo and the Donald (Letters, July 25). I suspect they would prefer Corby, Shorty and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Way more PC but not half as entertaining.
Born again
BORIS Johnson once said he had more chance of being reincarnated as an olive than of ever becoming prime minister of the United Kingdom. His eyes must have popped with amazement when he was officially announced as the United Kingdom’s next PM. A full English Brexit, here we come!
Cheap seats
STANDING out in my inbox — “Qantas Red Email …. Day 4: UK on sale now”. Wow, Boris does move fast.
What next
FIRST Donald Trump in the USA now Boris Johnson in the UK. How many more asylums will be run by the inmates?