Huge demand and more presentations at GSHS

GIPPSLAND South Health Service’s (GSHS) Leongatha hospital has recently dealt with several unexpected emergencies requiring staff to perform life-saving treatment.

The critical emergencies at the Leongatha Urgent Care Centre follow record demand with more than 4000 presentations over the past year, and a sharp rise in acuity.

GSHS Interim CEO Chris Trotman said the life-threatening emergency incidents included a seemingly fit and healthy man in his 20s who had a cardiac arrest, a man in his 70s who collapsed unconscious outside the hospital and a woman who arrived in labour and delivered a very premature baby with no time to transport her to a larger maternity service.

“While cases like these occur every day in major Melbourne hospitals, GSHS also treats many life-threatening emergencies and our community is lucky to have these skilled and caring clinical and non-clinical staff with their professional teamwork,” she said.

“The community is also lucky to have a helipad that can quickly connect critically-ill people to larger hospitals when needed. Ambulance Victoria Gippsland has been a great clinical support for GSHS, providing extra clinical support during active emergency scenarios and in ensuring timely transfer of critically unwell patients to tertiary centres where patients receive the specialist care they require.”

Director of Nursing Kylie Ashton said that over the past six months GSHS’s Leongatha Urgent Care Centre had dealt with more people with more severe illnesses. 

“We have seen more critical emergencies walk in the door and they have been managed really well in our small service with limited resources,” she said.

“Demand is definitely increasing but it’s not just the numbers, it’s the acuity. There have been instances where we haven’t had great expectations of outcomes but the people have thrived because of the care given here.”

My Emergency Doctor is now successfully embedded for overnight urgent care services.

Ms Trotman added that a number of emergency surgeries had recently been performed at GSHS.

She praised staff for a “team effort” in dealing with the run of emergencies. “Without this teamwork and high-level clinical care, the outcomes may have been very different,” she said.

“It’s timely to remined people about the need to consult your doctor if you’re feeling unwell and the need for COVID-19 precautions in the community and in our hospital,” she added.

“We also ask people to be patient at our Urgent Care Centre. Like many health services, we are often short-staffed due to COVID-19 and other illnesses. We have seen many examples in recent week where our Urgent Care staff have had to give priority to life-threatening cases.”

GSHS is currently recruiting staff in several areas and more details can be found at  https://www.gshs.com.au/careers.