Boiling mad at neglect

Hospital’s sticky point

A DOZEN heat-related complaints were logged in Launceston General Hospital’s internal safety reporting system during this summer’s heatwave amid longstanding problems with its airconditioning, coupled with the failure of one of its coolers.

The failure brought into sharp focus the frailty of the system, especially in D Block, the inpatient unit tower.

In a leaked email, Hospitals North chief executive Jennifer Duncan described the block overheating as a “long historical issue”.

“The system was designed to cater for 28C external ambient and as a result higher external temp causes problems,” she said.

According to figures provided to the Mercury, 47 complaints have been logged in the hospital’s internal Safety Reporting Learning System since the start of 2017.

The co-located allied health building, Northern Integrated Care Service, had 11 complaints against its heat between late 2021 to early 2022, nine of which occurred on a single day in November.

The remaining 36 complaints related to the hospital itself, predominantly D Block. A dozen complaints were logged there over a seven-day period in the last week of December and into January this year when Tasmania was experiencing a heatwave.

Australian Nurses and Midwives Federation Tasmania branch secretary Emily Shepherd previously told the Mercury that on December 27 last year, nurses working in 6D – the Covid ward – reported working in 40C heat wearing full personal protective equipment.

She said that members had reported “leav(ing) shifts early due to suffering from heat exhaustion and feeling faint”.

While only 21 complaints were logged the four years between 2017–2020, already 27 complaints have been logged in the two years since.

Ms Duncan told the Mercury there was no “quick fix” after years of neglect, punctuated only by the state government’s $1.4m spent on “priority areas” in the system in 2018.

“Management at the Launceston General Hospital and the Department of Health’s Infrastructure team are investigating options to improve cooling systems in parts of the hospital,” she said.

“D Block, on the west side of the hospital, can be particularly affected during warm weather.

“This is a longstanding issue which we are addressing with a number of interim measures, while a working party continues to investigate sustainable longer-term options.

“We are aware of the concerns ... but there is no quick fix. Infection prevention measures mean oscillating systems using fans are not suitable.

“The LGH is working hard to ensure patients are being cared for and staff are working in comfortable conditions.”