I would like to introduce you to a new friend of mine - Tresna Cullen, both of us united in tragedy at the loss of our loved ones through medical negligence by doctors still practising in NSW.
Tresna suffered the ultimate heartbreak by losing her daughter Jessica after presenting to a hospital with pain and pre-eclampsia symptoms in her eighth month of pregnancy that wasn't discovered on time and wasn't treated appropriately.
Another victim of a nation's shame. Another victim of a decrepit, deceitful and inadequate health system who victimise patients who dare complain and protects those who are negligent in their duties to preserve and sustain life by practising medicine.
Not good enough Australia, these same idiots are still practising medicine possibly treating your loved ones and through this corrupt system are taught to hide their mistakes at the expense of life and YOUR TAXES to pay for their incompetence.
"Tresna and I have discussed our respective stories and I will be joining Tresna's push to get medical negligence laws changed in this country, so these so called professionals will no longer be allowed to maim and cause death because of their own incompetence."
To read Tresna's story and the shocking state of what's happening in NSW Public Hospitals
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/patients-hospital-horrors/story-e6freuy9-1225840396474
I urge all of you to PLEASE ADD YOUR SIGNATURE Tresna's petition which is linked below
http://www.petitionspot.com/profile/5116435/Tresna_Cullen/
"Don't let Australia's public hospitals become human Abattoirs. Make the butchers accountable for their negligence." Medical Negligence Petition coming soon......
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
HCCC, The Coroner, St Vincent's Hospital and the first Anniversary of Mato's death
Tuesday marks the first anniversary of my father's death at the hands of St Vincent's Hospital in Darlinghurst. I have been keeping the details under wraps on this blog for legal reasons.
But what I will say is that our family watched firsthand my father die due to a number of errors on that night and I have been trying to have this matter investigated by the HCCC (Health Care Complaints Commission) and those who failed their duty of care to my father on that night made accountable.
After a year of trying to get answers from St Vincent's, the HCCC and the Coroner who by the way has advised me that they simply dont have enough resources, I have still not been given an answer as to why my father died on the 17th of August 2009.
It seems that in NSW there are simply not enough resources for the State Coroner to devote to those who's deaths are questionable, medical professionals are not made accountable for breaching a hospital's own procedures (the Hospital has admitted this) and the HCCC who believe that hastening a man's death by undergoing a procedure in a public hospital is not outside normal practicing procedures under anaesthetic to warrant disciplinary action.
The public health system in Australia is a disaster. For the aged and those that are terminally ill, pray to god you die before you put your faith in the public health system. I have received nothing but stumbling blocks in my quest to gain justice for my father.
It seems that medical professionals are exempt and untouchable for being held accountable for their errors, that in my father's case, cost him his life. Terminally ill or not, this was not a decent way for any human being's life to end.
In my own profession, if I cause serious errors, it may cost me my job. Yet if you are a Dr who performs a procedure without obtaining informed consent, breaching hospital procedures and not monitoring the patient who's life is in your hands, you are protected by the Government bodies who's job it is to improve people's lives and to ensure you receive the treatment YOUR TAXES PAY FOR.
Why do Australians cop this from those who we elect to act in our best interests? Why do we allow those who are considered to serve the community and who supposedly choose to undertake one of the more respected and honoured professions be allowed to be ensconsed in a layer of protection from prosecution from the legal system by the medical mafia in cohorts with the Government who wish to hide the shocking state of our public hospital system and their own incompetence, lack of funding and failure to provide a good public health system in a supposed first world country?
This is why I would support a private health system and a dismantling of the public health system, this would mean accountability, a high level of service and alot of buerocrats out of work.
The US have got it right, I wouldn't mind paying a $15 copay for a top class level of healthcare where the possiblity of litigation makes sure the i's are dotted and their t's are crossed.
But what I will say is that our family watched firsthand my father die due to a number of errors on that night and I have been trying to have this matter investigated by the HCCC (Health Care Complaints Commission) and those who failed their duty of care to my father on that night made accountable.
After a year of trying to get answers from St Vincent's, the HCCC and the Coroner who by the way has advised me that they simply dont have enough resources, I have still not been given an answer as to why my father died on the 17th of August 2009.
It seems that in NSW there are simply not enough resources for the State Coroner to devote to those who's deaths are questionable, medical professionals are not made accountable for breaching a hospital's own procedures (the Hospital has admitted this) and the HCCC who believe that hastening a man's death by undergoing a procedure in a public hospital is not outside normal practicing procedures under anaesthetic to warrant disciplinary action.
The public health system in Australia is a disaster. For the aged and those that are terminally ill, pray to god you die before you put your faith in the public health system. I have received nothing but stumbling blocks in my quest to gain justice for my father.
It seems that medical professionals are exempt and untouchable for being held accountable for their errors, that in my father's case, cost him his life. Terminally ill or not, this was not a decent way for any human being's life to end.
In my own profession, if I cause serious errors, it may cost me my job. Yet if you are a Dr who performs a procedure without obtaining informed consent, breaching hospital procedures and not monitoring the patient who's life is in your hands, you are protected by the Government bodies who's job it is to improve people's lives and to ensure you receive the treatment YOUR TAXES PAY FOR.
Why do Australians cop this from those who we elect to act in our best interests? Why do we allow those who are considered to serve the community and who supposedly choose to undertake one of the more respected and honoured professions be allowed to be ensconsed in a layer of protection from prosecution from the legal system by the medical mafia in cohorts with the Government who wish to hide the shocking state of our public hospital system and their own incompetence, lack of funding and failure to provide a good public health system in a supposed first world country?
This is why I would support a private health system and a dismantling of the public health system, this would mean accountability, a high level of service and alot of buerocrats out of work.
The US have got it right, I wouldn't mind paying a $15 copay for a top class level of healthcare where the possiblity of litigation makes sure the i's are dotted and their t's are crossed.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Not satisfied with the care your loved one is receiving in Palliative Care?
I have received a few emails with stories of unacceptable practices in palliative care facilities in Australia.
This includes: Not feeding patients who are too weak to feed themselves, leaving them in their own excrement as well as nurses not providing the care they should in these facilities.
For those that emailed me. I am very sorry to hear this, I have certainly witnessed this in at least one Palliative Care facility my father was in.
We won't change anything until our voices are heard. I encourage you wholeheartedly to contact the Palliative Care Association in your particular states and share your experiences with them also.
http://www.palliativecare.org.au/
This includes: Not feeding patients who are too weak to feed themselves, leaving them in their own excrement as well as nurses not providing the care they should in these facilities.
For those that emailed me. I am very sorry to hear this, I have certainly witnessed this in at least one Palliative Care facility my father was in.
We won't change anything until our voices are heard. I encourage you wholeheartedly to contact the Palliative Care Association in your particular states and share your experiences with them also.
http://www.palliativecare.org.au/
More ER's Examine How to Incorporate Palliative Care - USA
Article Date: 09 Aug 2010
The Wall Street Journal Health Blog reports on increased discussions about palliative care following a recent New Yorker piece by M.D.-journalist Atul Gawande and a new piece in Slate that examines end-of-life care and the emergency room.
"In Slate yesterday, Joanne Kenen reports on how palliative care plays out in the emergency room, where many of these patients with chronic, terminal diseases are frequent visitors. One of 500 ER patients dies there, and another 3% subsequently die in the hospital after being admitted. ... Emory University Hospital, the Bronx's Montefiore Medical Center and Chicago's Northwest Memorial Hospital are all 'exploring the intersection' between the two fields, integrating palliative care physicians and nurses into the treatment team, when necessary. The emergency room, she writes, 'is one place to start' to change the very 'culture of care' in the U.S., 'doing a better job of caring for patients with slowly worsening chronic disease'" (Hobson, 8/5).
This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org.
© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
The Wall Street Journal Health Blog reports on increased discussions about palliative care following a recent New Yorker piece by M.D.-journalist Atul Gawande and a new piece in Slate that examines end-of-life care and the emergency room.
"In Slate yesterday, Joanne Kenen reports on how palliative care plays out in the emergency room, where many of these patients with chronic, terminal diseases are frequent visitors. One of 500 ER patients dies there, and another 3% subsequently die in the hospital after being admitted. ... Emory University Hospital, the Bronx's Montefiore Medical Center and Chicago's Northwest Memorial Hospital are all 'exploring the intersection' between the two fields, integrating palliative care physicians and nurses into the treatment team, when necessary. The emergency room, she writes, 'is one place to start' to change the very 'culture of care' in the U.S., 'doing a better job of caring for patients with slowly worsening chronic disease'" (Hobson, 8/5).
This information was reprinted from kaiserhealthnews.org with kind permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives and sign up for email delivery at kaiserhealthnews.org.
© Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.
Friday, August 6, 2010
The prodigal palliative care blogger returns!
Yep it's been a long time. I had to take time off to work through my experiences with my father and to commit myself half heartedly to this blog just wasn't fair, but now its time to put my heart and soul back into this blog who's topic remains close to my heart.......
Sunday, November 29, 2009
Australians Dying Badly........
Palliative Care Australia report on a recent national forum recently held in Canberra to discuss end of life issues and the current health system and as I suspected the results aren't great.
Yes Australians are dying badly, our palliative care planning and services are a disgrace generally and Australians facing terminal illness and the prospect of palliative care in this country will face hell on earth. Most experiences including my own as a carer have been and eyeopener, what I saw and experienced in palliative care facillities make me fear for my own mortality and the possibility of facing a terminal illness myself some day a frightening prospect. not just because of facing death but because of the lack of care, being left soiled and coping with pain because staff aren't qualified to provide appropriate pain management let alone know how to best treat my symptoms.
"My criticism here is that the forum was only attended to by medical professionals but they really need to involve the community, carers and those facing palliative care sooner rather than later in these discussions. I know I'd like to have my say also. "
To read the article in full here is the link:-
http://www.palliativecare.org.au/Portals/46/media/Australians%20Dying%20Badly%20-%20PCA%20Media%20Release%205%20Nov%202009.pdf
Yes Australians are dying badly, our palliative care planning and services are a disgrace generally and Australians facing terminal illness and the prospect of palliative care in this country will face hell on earth. Most experiences including my own as a carer have been and eyeopener, what I saw and experienced in palliative care facillities make me fear for my own mortality and the possibility of facing a terminal illness myself some day a frightening prospect. not just because of facing death but because of the lack of care, being left soiled and coping with pain because staff aren't qualified to provide appropriate pain management let alone know how to best treat my symptoms.
"My criticism here is that the forum was only attended to by medical professionals but they really need to involve the community, carers and those facing palliative care sooner rather than later in these discussions. I know I'd like to have my say also. "
To read the article in full here is the link:-
http://www.palliativecare.org.au/Portals/46/media/Australians%20Dying%20Badly%20-%20PCA%20Media%20Release%205%20Nov%202009.pdf
Demand Grows for Palliative Care
Humanistic medicine attracts more doctors
By MARNETTE FEDERIS The Seattle Times
SEATTLE — It was a personal experience that first exposed Dr. Christine Cofer to palliative medicine.
During her late teens, when her father was suffering from metastatic kidney cancer and conventional treatments could no longer help him, he started receiving hospice care.
The nurses and social workers who came into their home were a calming presence during a difficult time, Cofer, an internist, said.
"It was a really positive experience for my family."
When it was time to choose a subspecialty, Cofer, a 42-year-old former substance-abuse counselor, decided to go into palliative medicine.
As demand grows for palliative care, a field focused on alleviating pain and increasing quality of life for seriously ill patients and their families, so does the need to formally train doctors in the subspecialty.
Palliative medicine, which includes hospice care, addresses the physical, psychological and spiritual well-being of patients with advanced diseases and their family members.
Doctors must learn pain-management techniques, how to deal with the emotions of patients and how to work with a team of nurses, social workers and even spiritual advisers.
There are 62 medical-school programs across the country offering such training.
One is the University of Washington School of Medicine which, in partnership with Providence Hospice of Seattle, is piloting the only palliative fellowship program in the state.
Cofer, first physician to participate in the University of Washington program, said her interest in the humanistic side of medicine attracted her to palliative care.
"It was sort of a natural step for me," Cofer said. Palliative medicine "allowed me to practice medicine the way I was taught in medical school — you spend more time with people to talk about the things that contribute to suffering."
Most medical students are exposed to palliative and hospice care in school and in residencies, but until recently, formal training and certification in the field has not been widely available.
Palliative medicine was designated a subspecialty in 2006 by the American Board of Medical Specialties and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. The board offered the first certification exam last year.
Trainees in the yearlong program must complete a residency in one of 11 specialties that include internal medicine, anesthesiology, family medicine, and obstetrics and pediatrics. They must also train in hospitals, hospice settings and a long-term facility such as a nursing home.
That this type of care is becoming mainstream represents "a sea change for the practice of medicine," said Wayne McCormick, director of the University of Washington's Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program.
Still, many lay people may not know what hospice care is until they have a personal experience with a palliative-care team, he said. And "because it's so patient- and family-centered ... the value becomes palpable when you're actually in the middle of it."
———
(c) 2009, The Seattle Times.
By MARNETTE FEDERIS The Seattle Times
SEATTLE — It was a personal experience that first exposed Dr. Christine Cofer to palliative medicine.
During her late teens, when her father was suffering from metastatic kidney cancer and conventional treatments could no longer help him, he started receiving hospice care.
The nurses and social workers who came into their home were a calming presence during a difficult time, Cofer, an internist, said.
"It was a really positive experience for my family."
When it was time to choose a subspecialty, Cofer, a 42-year-old former substance-abuse counselor, decided to go into palliative medicine.
As demand grows for palliative care, a field focused on alleviating pain and increasing quality of life for seriously ill patients and their families, so does the need to formally train doctors in the subspecialty.
Palliative medicine, which includes hospice care, addresses the physical, psychological and spiritual well-being of patients with advanced diseases and their family members.
Doctors must learn pain-management techniques, how to deal with the emotions of patients and how to work with a team of nurses, social workers and even spiritual advisers.
There are 62 medical-school programs across the country offering such training.
One is the University of Washington School of Medicine which, in partnership with Providence Hospice of Seattle, is piloting the only palliative fellowship program in the state.
Cofer, first physician to participate in the University of Washington program, said her interest in the humanistic side of medicine attracted her to palliative care.
"It was sort of a natural step for me," Cofer said. Palliative medicine "allowed me to practice medicine the way I was taught in medical school — you spend more time with people to talk about the things that contribute to suffering."
Most medical students are exposed to palliative and hospice care in school and in residencies, but until recently, formal training and certification in the field has not been widely available.
Palliative medicine was designated a subspecialty in 2006 by the American Board of Medical Specialties and Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education. The board offered the first certification exam last year.
Trainees in the yearlong program must complete a residency in one of 11 specialties that include internal medicine, anesthesiology, family medicine, and obstetrics and pediatrics. They must also train in hospitals, hospice settings and a long-term facility such as a nursing home.
That this type of care is becoming mainstream represents "a sea change for the practice of medicine," said Wayne McCormick, director of the University of Washington's Palliative Medicine Fellowship Program.
Still, many lay people may not know what hospice care is until they have a personal experience with a palliative-care team, he said. And "because it's so patient- and family-centered ... the value becomes palpable when you're actually in the middle of it."
———
(c) 2009, The Seattle Times.
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