Category 1 patient still waiting after 7 months
A 70-year-old man has been forced to wait seven months for brain surgery despite having a potentially life threatening aneurysm.
LNP Shadow Minister for Health Mark McArdle raised Forest Lake resident Hans Hagen’s long wait in Parliament today, after the Health Minister failed to respond to Mr Hagen’s correspondence.
Mr McArdle said the delays and bureaucratic hurdles Mr Hagen had faced were an indictment on the Queensland’s health system.
“Category one patients are the most urgent cases — Queensland Health’s own guidelines state the patient should be admitted for treatment in 30 days — but 267 days after Mr Hagen’s aneurysm was first diagnosed he still is waiting to get into the operating theatre,” he said.
“This is simply unacceptable — how did our health system get so bad that a man with a serious life-threatening condition is just told to go home and wait for seven months?”
Mr McArdle said Mr Hagen had been reluctant to raise his case publicly, but after seven months and excuses the pensioner felt he had no other choice.
“Mr Hagen has been told time and time again by doctor after doctor that his surgery should have been done by now — but no-one has been able to get him into the operating theatre,” he said.
“Mr Lucas won’t respond to Mr Hagen’s letters, the Health Quality Complaints Commission can’t act and still Mr Hagen’s life is in the balance.”
Mr McArdle said Mr Hagen had been advised to stop taking medication for another health problem in preparation for the surgery — but the surgery never happened.
“Mr Hagen has put his health at risk by staying off his blood thinning medication so he was ready for surgery.
“Now he has been told by the Department of Neurosurgery that he may as well go back onto his medication, because “pressure on operating time” means they can’t book him in for surgery.”
“This is a disgrace and it’s all because the Labor Government has systematically run our health system into the ground.
“In Parliament today, I called on the Health Minister to personally meet with Mr Hagen to apologise for his treatment and explain how such a disgraceful mistake could happen.
“Its time the Health Minister took responsibility for his portfolio and ensured this kind of delay does not happen again.”