Australia: Man sues over amazing 13-hour ambulance wait

A grandfather who will spend the rest of his life in a vegetative state is suing Victoria's ambulance service after waiting 13 hours for help after hitting his head. Katrina Marinovic is bringing the Supreme Court action - believed to be potentially worth more than $1 million - on behalf of her father, Ilija, who now has little brain function and is fed through a tube. Ms Marinovic says her father fell and hit his head at 8pm on October 26, 2006, but was forced to wait until 9.30am the next day for treatment after a mix-up meant an ambulance was sent but then cancelled.

"He was such a big character and such a strong person, it's hard for us to see him now compared to what he was before," Ms Marinovic said. "Thinking that he was left for all those hours, it really affects us. "He would give you the shirt off his back - he was that sort of man." The plasterer, 56, lost his balance outside his Preston home and fell down steps on to concrete. A neighbour immediately called 000.

The statement of claim alleges an ambulance was dispatched then cancelled and the matter was handed over to police to investigate whether medical help was needed - which did not occur.

The Marinovic family, who are represented by law firm Arnold, Thomas and Becker, are suing the Metropolitan Ambulance Service, the Emergency Services Telecommunication Authority and the State of Victoria. The writ alleges that the ambulance service and its dispatcher, along with the police who were contacted after the 000 call, were negligent in failing to follow up the request for help. It claims police did not comprehend the urgency or send an officer to check whether an ambulance was needed.

Father of three Mr Marinovic, who also has two grandsons, had emergency skull and brain surgery but was left in a vegetative state, with his family claiming the lengthy delay made his injuries worse. He is living in a nursing home near his family in South Morang, where he needs constant medical attention. The family are seeking medical costs, damages for loss of earnings and loss of life expectancy and for pain and suffering. A spokesman for the ambulance service said they were awaiting further details from court documents.

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Australia: Yet another safety report ignored by Health Department

The Torres Strait Islands are rather idyllic places. Some good pictures here. It takes a government to make a hell of them

A THIRD report detailing how the safety of nurses in the Torres Strait was compromised has emerged, placing renewed pressure on embattled Health Minister Stephen Robertson. This latest report warns how the personal safety of health staff was at risk throughout the archipelago because of rapidly deteriorating buildings, including on Mabuiag Island where a nurse was allegedly raped last month. The report has further exposed a culture of inaction as it was written in October 2005 - a year before a damning risk report warned of the need for urgent action. Another report, commissioned in the weeks after the alleged rape, has also prompted criticism the Government still failed to act.

Amid Opposition calls for his resignation, Mr Robertson yesterday spoke of his frustration that another warning had been ignored by his department. "This is clearly just another case where a report has been commissioned and very little work has been done on it," said Mr Robertson, who again refused to accept responsibility. It comes as a walkout of nurses in the Torres Strait looms amid revelations they had written to former health director-general Uschi Schreiber in 2006 and 2007 highlighting their plight.

The newly uncovered report - conducted predominantly for workplace health and safety purposes - identified problems on all 14 islands visited. On Mabuiag, the report warned issues "revolve around personal safety and environmental issues", including lattice slats that were a ready-made ladder to the upstairs accommodation. "A duress alarm does not work in the toilet and, after visiting several other facilities, it was found there were similar problems at other facilities with the same system," it said.

Mr Robertson said it was not acceptable that neglect of the accommodation had placed staff at risk. However, the minister said he had seen Queensland Health's commitment to the area first-hand on his tour of four islands on Thursday. "Generally the standard of accommodation is pretty good," he said.

In a bid to hose down a growing furore over whether the Government acted after the alleged rape, Mr Robertson will today release the briefing notes he received after the incident on February 5. The notes - released to The Courier-Mail last night - said the incident had "reignited issues around the security and safety of staff". They also detail how assaults on Thursday Island nurses in 2007 had prompted a risk-assessment by occupational health and safety officers and the cycle was repeated after the Mabuiag Island incident.

Deputy Opposition Leader Fiona Simpson said the minister should take responsibility for his inaction and resign. But Mr Robertson rejected the call and insisted he had also acted on problems in the region highlighted by local Labor MP Jason O'Brien. "They know as well as anyone else that right throughout this whole episode, on not one occasion have I been found wanting in terms of my response when matters have been brought to my attention," he said.

Premier Anna Bligh said the Health Minister retained her full confidence. "Mr Robertson will do whatever is necessary to ensure the right response for staff and patients," Ms Bligh said.

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A government that can't

Nurse strike on Torres Strait Islands likely. I suppose it is very optimistic to expect promptness and efficiency from a government

A NURSE has abandoned a condemned Torres Strait health centre as frenzied repair work throughout the islands appears unlikely to be completed in time to prevent a district-wide strike next weekend. The Courier-Mail has been told it would be "almost impossible" for maintenance workers to fix all the problems which have come to light since a nurse was allegedly raped on Mabuiag Island last month. Locksmiths and carpenters have been shuttling between the islands for the past fortnight, frantically fixing broken locks, windows and doors and addressing years of unresolved maintenance requests.

On Wednesday, a nurse walked off the job after being forced to live in a condemned building on Darnley Island while a new, purpose-built clinic sat empty nearby. Sources said the nurse refused to keep working on the island until power was connected to the new building.

Queensland's Health Minister, Stephen Robertson, flew to the Torres Strait on Thursday in a bid to diffuse growing anger over worker safety in the remote region. During the trip, Mr Robertson visited several islands - including Mabuiag - to meet with Queensland Health workers. The State Government is under fire for failing to act on a report completed in late 2006 which warned about problems at work and accommodation facilities in the Torres Strait. The Queensland Nurses Union has set a March 28 deadline for the Government to fix the security issues or nurses will walk off the job across the region. QNU secretary Gay Hawksworth welcomed Mr Robertson's visit and hoped it would prompt faster repairs. "I'm pleased that he's gone there to see it first-hand and talk to nurses directly," Ms Hawksworth said. "But our deadline remains March 28."

Nurses working on 11 islands in the region have raised repeated concerns about poor security, lighting, faulty duress alarms, generators, fire and smoke alarms, broken locks and problems with sewerage systems. Premier Anna Bligh said she hoped the issues could be resolved quickly. "The most urgent matters in relation to security are being attended to first and then work is being prioritised," she said. Ms Bligh also defended Mr Robertson's handling of the issue: "The Minister for Health . . . has had what can only be described as unreliable advice out of the Torres Strait on these issues in the past, so he is personally going to satisfy himself on the progress of work and ensure that it is proceeding in the fastest possible place."

Mr Robertson said Queensland Health had to demonstrate that it was seriously addressing the problems but he urged nurses to remain. "I am hopeful that as we address these issues the level of frustration and angst and anger will reduce," he said.

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