Dr Isaac Wade

Member Case Study: The Reality of the Frontline

‍

Q: Since you began practising, have you noticed a difference between your work a few years ago and the climate now?

"We’re dealing with higher patient numbers than ever before. The hospital is always over 100% capacity, which is an absurd figure. We’re making beds in spaces that were never meant for patients. In one case, a windowless storeroom has been fitted with curtains to accommodate 10 patients."

‍

Q: What does that look like for the ward you’re working in, for you and for your patients? 

"As a result of massive shortages in allied health and other staff, we have patients staying in hospital for 100+ days. It’s now taking two to three weeks from referral to services actually being available. These patients might come in with an acute issue that gets resolved, but because they remain in hospital, they develop infections or have falls. These are entirely preventable complications. A few years ago, having 10–15 patients staying longer than 14 days would have been a bizarre outlier. Now, that’s my list."

‍

Q: Do you think this situation is sustainable? 

"From a financial perspective, it’s obviously unsustainable. The government responds in a flashy way, saying, ‘hospitals are so busy, we need to build a new hospital.' But even before the new Tweed Valley Hospital was built, there were staffing issues. Now we have more space, but not enough staff - or staff spread more thinly, which is less safe.

It’s increasingly unsustainable and dangerous for staff. Where I work, the result has been the loss of huge numbers of staff. Last year, all consultant Obstetricians and Gynaecologists threatened to resign because the department had become so unsafe.

We’re at the point where people with serious conditions cannot access care. We’re constantly being asked: ‘Who do you want to miss out so this patient can be treated?' That is a bizarre and unacceptable conversation to be having in what should be a well-functioning health system."

‍

This testimony is a stark reminder of why ASMOF NSW campaigns for better staffing, safer workloads, and a system that values and respects doctors in the public system. No doctor should be forced to decide "who misses out" on vital health care.

‍

You are not alone in this. Add your voice to the collective fighting for a safer, fairer public health system.

‍

Join ASMOF NSW and make a difference.