VICTORIA’S rural and regional health services are in crisis mode, with increased demand compounded by Easter and Anzac Day long weekends, suspensions of maternity services, and Code Yellows across several hospitals.

A Code Yellow was declared at Ballarat Base Hospital on Friday and at hospitals in Shepparton and Wangaratta recently, while Albury Wodonga Health was allegedly forced to trigger the code twice after being overloaded with patients from both sides of the border.

A Code Yellow signifies an internal emergency and allows a hospital to implement care models outside of its normal service delivery, for example an inability to treat everyone waiting in its emergency department.

Last weekend, in preparation of a huge influx of visitors to the Portland region, Western District Health Service (WDHS) was flagged as an option for anyone needing health care services.

In a post on its Facebook account last Friday, Portland District Health (PDH) asked the community and visitors to consider attending the Emergency Departments at either South West Healthcare in Warrnambool or WDHS in Hamilton to ensure the focus of its hard-working healthcare workers would stay on those needing emergency support most.

PDH is facing a number of issues, including the suspension of birthing services last month for three months, as well as the resignation of ophthalmologist Robert Harvey, who has spoken publicly about the management problems at PDH and whom has not yet been replaced.

Meanwhile, it has also been revealed that PDH is now without an overnight urgent on-call doctor.

In a post on its Facebook account on Tuesday, PDH stated it would like to reassure the community that it continues to provide safe, effective urgent care.

“Our Urgent Care Centre remains open 24-7 and our clinical staff are drawing on telehealth services including My Emergency Doctor where necessary (and) we also have several senior specialist medical staff on call,” the post said.

However, in a media statement yesterday, South West Coast MP, Roma Britnell said the Portland community should be gravely concerned about PDH being without overnight urgent care doctors from April 23-May 1.

“The government (has) allowed PDH to lurch into another crisis,” she said.

“The State Government needs to stop hiding behind COVID-19 as Portland District Health is plunged into yet another crisis.

Ms Britnell said that services were disappearing before the eyes of regional Victorians and the government needed to take action to ensure the future of PDH.

“Not just hide behind the pandemic as the cause of all these problems,” she said.

“Losing someone at PDH from cardiac arrest because there are no doctors available to intubate is completely unacceptable.

“This is literally a matter of life and death.”

Grampians Health is one of the regional health services that implemented a Code Yellow (internal emergency) on April 21, although as of Tuesday afternoon, was cautiously revoked.

Wimmera Base Hospital also deferred its maternity cases a fortnight ago, forcing expectant mothers to travel an extra two and a half hours to Ballarat or another regional hospital to give birth.

  Lowan MP, Emma Kealy slammed the State Government stating it was only six months since the creation of Grampians Health, which absorbed Wimmera Health Care Group, Ballarat Health Services, Edenhope & District Memorial Hospital, and Stawell Regional Health, with some services already ceased.

“Dental services at the Edenhope campus stopped, reports that the fracture clinic at the Horsham Campus has closed with people needing to travel to Ballarat for treatment, and now we learn that maternity services have also been suspended indefinitely,” she said.

Grampians Health Acute Operations executive director, Ben Kelly said Grampians Health had returned to business as usual, following the temporary Code Yellow, albeit still with the pressures of COVID-19.

“Over the weekend we were able to manage significant demand that was compounded by Easter and Anzac Day long weekends,” Mr Kelly said.

WDHS chief executive, Rohan Fitzgerald said that the pressures health services were facing throughout the region were undoubtedly having a knock-on effect. 

“The WDHS Emergency Department (ED) has been straining at the seams for years,” he said.

Mr Fitzgerald said that each year WDHS continued to break records for the number of patients treated.

 859 patients came through the Hamilton Hospital ED in March this year, the most recorded patients in a single month.

“We had hoped the increasing number of patients presenting to ED would ease over time, however this has not been the case,” he said.

“To address the serious physical ED capacity constraints, we’ve been advocating for the State Government to fund a $32 million redevelopment of the ED and ICU (Intensive Care Unit) at the Hamilton Base Hospital.

“Most of the current growth in patient numbers is due to population growth in our area and the difficulties of getting into a GP.

“Rural hospitals across Australia do a remarkable job of providing services with limited resources. 

“WDHS is fortunate to be supported by an amazing nursing, medical and healthcare workforce, and at this stage we don’t envisage any changes to service delivery at the Hamilton Base Hospital ED.”