A widely known Australian theme park has doubled up as a medical facility, after leaked footage revealed a Queensland hospital is utilizing the venue to deal with its soon-to-be discharged sufferers.
In a bid to unencumber beds at Gold Coast University Hospital, Sea World Resort is internet hosting sufferers who “no longer require care within an acute hospital setting”.
The initiative is a part of a trial because the hospital seeks different strategies to beat persistent mattress scarcity fears forward of the winter season, with figures obtained by the Courier Mail suggesting there’s already a scarcity of 211 in a single day beds with this set to extend to 375 by 2026.
“The Southport Lower Acuity Accommodation is a great example of an innovative solution to the increasing demand for more patient beds on the Gold Coast,” a Gold Coast Health spokesperson stated.
“There is a detailed clinical process for approving patients who are suitable for transfer to the facility.”
It’s understood as much as 24 beds at Sea World Resort – the resort hooked up to the theme park – are occupied by the hospital according to the trial, with sufferers on the venue receiving care from nurses “24 hours a day, seven days a week”.
Doctors are additionally on-site with sufferers referred to the ability present process a medical clearance earlier than they are often transferred.
“All the health care needs of patients are provided on site including medications, medical equipment and any dietary requirements,” the spokesperson stated.
The division is but to disclose how a lot the initiative will value and who’s answerable for forking out the invoice, with rooms often priced between $314 and $439 an evening in keeping with Sea World Resort’s web site.
The Gold Coast Department of Health revealed the initiative commenced in early May, with affected person suggestions stated to be “overwhelmingly positive”.
“This solution provides a comfortable, supported environment, where patients can recover while still receiving the care appropriate to their needs,” the spokesperson stated.
However not all are happy with the concept, with the Opposition slamming the association in parliament, arguing it was an indication of the Government’s “failure to invest” within the well being system.
“Has the situation become so dire in Queensland Health that hospital beds are now being replaced with hotel beds?” Shadow Health Minister Ros Bates requested.
The question amassed debate in parliament on Wednesday, given the trial wasn’t publicly introduced by the Department of Health prior.
Liberal member for Bonney Sam O’Connor additionally questioned the trial, citing one aged affected person’s expertise after he was transported to the resort following remedy for a damaged pelvis which he sustained in a automobile accident.
“Rod was recovering at Gold Coast University Hospital after breaking his pelvis … Rod was suddenly transferred to a hotel room in Sea World,” Mr O’Connor stated.
He later argued Rod’s mattress couldn’t be height-adjusted to swimsuit his wants, whereas the chairs “weren’t suitable for an elderly patient with a broken pelvis”.
Mr O’Connor’s claims had been backed by a leaked video of the ability which largely replicated Sea World Resort’s typical resort rooms.
There solely gave the impression to be one cushioned lounge chair, with the non-padded eating chairs and double mattress unable to be adjusted.
Medical tools like a bathe chair and IV drip stand had been the one indicators the room belonged to a hospital affected person.
However, Queensland’s Minister for Health Shannon Fentiman defended the trial, arguing she was “more than happy” to speak to the affected person about his expertise.
“We will always take complaints from constituents very seriously,” she stated.
“But these are decisions that are made by clinicians and we respect them.”
She later reiterated the concept “was not a new concept”, with earlier governments adopting the concept together with the Coalition when it was in energy.
Sea World Resort confirmed it’s offering “a small allocation of sectioned off rooms for Gold Coast Health to provide short-term stays for low-care guests”.
“The health and wellbeing of our guests at Sea World Resort is our highest priority,” a spokesperson for Village Roadshow Theme Parks stated.
“The guests staying in these sectioned off rooms are low acuity special care guests and are being cared for and managed under the strict protocols set by Gold Coast Health and do not have access to hotel facilities outside of their allocated area, and we wish them well in their recovery.”
Source: www.news.com.au
