Senior doctor treated badly

I AM a retired registered nurse and have known Dr Jane Tolman since 2006. She is an outstanding geriatrician who deeply cares for the welfare of her patients. The way the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Authority and the Medical Council have dealt with her beggars belief. She sought to improve the care of the elderly and address some of the issues with the toxic culture at the Royal Hobart Hospital. She should be lauded for this.

With a third of the state’s budget going into the health system, which is manifestly dysfunctional with everyone crying out for more funds, it should be obvious that the status quo is not sustainable. The RHH needs a massive culture change and more senior doctors like Jane Tolman. Hilde Nilsson Blackmans Bay

Daring to speak up

I ALSO write in support of and to thank Dr Jane Tolman. Her knowledge, support, compassion and professional care for the elderly is second to none. I not only experienced this with my mother but saw it with others in aged care homes. Daring to speak up against bureaucrats for reform on behalf of the elderly has resulted in a disgraceful, drawn-out attempt to discredit and bully her. Too many people hold her in the highest esteem and respect for this to happen. We all need to speak up on her behalf on this shameful, ridiculous treatment and decisions made by AHPRA and THPT for not conforming. Helen Marshall Sandy Bay

Empathy and guidance

OUR family has found that Dr Jane Tolman is exceptionally generous with her expertise, time and energy. The increasing incidence of dementia has made the understanding of it even more important. Dr Tolman has gone out into the community with her free public lectures and courses on dementia. She has also worked tirelessly with many family members who have benefited, not only from her vast knowledge, but also from her empathy and her guidance to manage the day-today challenges that dementia presents. Liz McQuilkin Sandy Bay

Always there

WHEN attending a talk on dementia by Dr Jane Tolman, I was amazed at her generosity in giving her mobile phone number to all in the room. In desperation with my loved one’s increasing paranoia, I reluctantly rang her. It was a Sunday afternoon and the understanding and clear advice received from Dr Tolman was invaluable will never be forgotten. Jenny Wheatley Margate

Injustices

GOOD to see that the nasty “boys’ club” culture at Tourism Tasmania has been addressed ( Mercury, October 15). Let’s hope that the injustices suffered by Dr Jane Tolman at the RHH, as reported in the Mercury these past two weeks, receive similar high-level attention. Robert Gibson Mt Stuart

Unborn have rights too

I COMMEND Michael Watts’ response (Letters, October 9) to Sarah Lovell’s statement that abortion is a “vital health procedure”. I agree with Mr Watts that life begins at conception. The unborn have rights too. Harry Roberts Huonville

Royal best place to go

WITH all the complaints about ambulance ramping and poor service at the Royal Hobart Hospital, I have to reply that last week, I had cause to visit the Emergency Department of the RHH, and the thought of not getting assistance never entered my mind.

Yes, there was an ambulance parked in the bay, but I went in, and was attended to virtually immediately, seen by a doctor, and admitted to the inner sanctum, then to X-ray, then even further into the bowels of the hospital for a total of six hours, for more tests and finally discharged.

How come the media only paints the hospital in a bad light, when it is supposedly stretched to the limit, with images showing lots of ambulances, which, bearing in mind their occupants, are within the hospital system, being treated on a worstfirst basis, which is how all hospitals work.

My experience, and that includes all my visits to the ED, has been that never was I slow to receive the required attention, and travelled through the “system” at a pace where sometimes, yes, the doctors had to attend to someone worse off then I.

If one is crook, the Royal is the best place to go. Beautiful and courteous people within, working under pressure, and many times laughing and happy.

Oh, and my wife drove me there, at the recommendation of my doctor, as it was quicker than having to call for an ambulance. Bruce Reynolds Lindisfarne