Launceston General Hospital emergency department solutions coming

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comingBy Emily BakerJune 22 2016 - 5:30pmBy Emily BakerJune 22 2016 - 5:30pmFacebookTwitterWhatsappEmailCopy HEALTH Minister Michael Ferguson is expected to present his solution to issues

plaguing the Launceston General Hospital emergency department this week.

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50% off EOFY SaleAll articles from our website & appThe digital version of Today's PaperCrosswords, Sudoku and TriviaAll other regional websites in your areaContinueMinister to offer answers

on LGH Nine out of 11 emergency department consultants have quit, retired or reduced their hours in just a month in response to a lack of resources and a suggested pay cut.

Doctors and nurses have painted a dire picture of the situation with one registered nurse saying she had never seen anything so bad in her almost 40-year career.

Mr Ferguson said he and Tasmanian Health Service chief executive David Alcorn had made addressing the issues at the LGH their top priority.

“We are focused on solutions and we will do what needs to be done to ensure patients get better care in our emergency departments,” he said.

“I will have more to say on this in coming days.”

Opposition health spokeswoman Rebecca White said Mr Ferguson had had long enough.

“What we know is that for a number of weeks now health professionals have been raising concerns about a number of pressures at the emergency department at the LGH and for the same number of

weeks professionals have been leaving,” she said.

“It’s something that’s happened over a number of weeks and the minister has had plenty of time to respond but unfortunately he has failed to do anything about it.”

Australian Medical Association state president Tim Greenaway said there were effectively just four beds for emergency cases at the LGH on Wednesday with the majority of clinical beds hosting

admitted patients.

He said 27 of 31 beds were taken up once isolation and Acute Medical Unit beds were taken out of the mix.

The AMA met with senior emergency department staff on Tuesday night.

“The current situation at the LGH is they’ve got bed block, it’s a major issue, and we do not have enough beds in the North or South of the state,” Dr Greenaway said.

“I’ve been here 24 years and never seen anything like it.”

One emergency department consultant who had indicated they were leaving had been offered their job at a locum rate, Dr Greenaway said – equal to about three times his normal wage.

“The money is not the issue, it’s the working conditions in the emergency department,” Dr Greenaway said.

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