Hospital ED overloaded
Staff scramble to cope with high demand
THE Townsville hospital emergency department has been overwhelmed with almost 300 daily presentations, as those with “less urgent conditions” are encouraged to see a GP instead.
Townsville University Hospital moved to Tier 3 on Monday as staff scrambled to manage high demand in its emergency department, which was only deactivated at 12.30pm on Wednesday.
Townsville Hospital and Health Service chief executive Kieran Keyes said the emergency department saw 296 presentations on Sunday, 293 on Monday, and 251 on Tuesday.
“We know emergency department wait times are longer in periods of high demand, and we ask the community for their patience as our teams work as quickly as possible,” he said.
“For people with less urgent conditions, we encourage them to seek advice from Townsville’s large and respected GP network.”
“It is difficult to predict when there will be a surge in acutely unwell patients and unfortunately, there are times when we must postpone lessurgent elective procedures due to clinical requirements or to accommodate emergency surgical care such as trauma.
“At this time, there are no plans for the Townsville Hospital and Health Service to scale back planned care including elective surgery and medical outpatient appointments.”
It comes as hospitals across Queensland — including Townsville Hospital, Cairns Health, Mackay Hospital, and Rockhampton Hospital — begin to feel the pressure of the fourth wave of Covid-19 hitting the state.
Eight Covid-19 positive inpatients were in Townsville’s infectious diseases unit, and one was in the intensive care unit on Wednesday.
“As always, we are carefully monitoring the situation to ensure our health service can respond accordingly,” Mr Keyes said. “Getting vaccinated against Covid-19 and influenza is the best way to protect yourself and your community.”
We ask the community for their patience KIERAN KEYES