hospitals

I was talking to a nursing friend who works in a large suburban Melbourne hospital emergency department, triaging patients for a particular area. I will call her Angie.

Who in earth designed this VHIMS system and why haven't they been sent to prison? How many people have suffered by this? The Victorian Health Department relies on this evil joke of a system: http://www.health.vic.gov.au/clinrisk/vhims/ The policy of promotions by 'merit' somehow finishes up keeping anyone intelligent or principled out of executive jobs in this field. I have actually used the VHIMS system and the absolute failure of management to care that it made things worse contributed to my growing sense of danger and injustice. The attitude to safety and the law in public hospitals is absurd - no better than in Florence Nightingale's time. Hospital managers are reckless; they are laws unto themselves. Inside excerpt from Auditor General's shocking report on Victoria's hospitals.

The Medical Journal of Australia has published an article which looks at the devastating impact of population growth on public hospitals in Australia, as well as the more general impact of increased urbanisation, urban sprawl, and the reduced 'walkability' of neighbourhoods.

Here is an extract focusing on the problems public hospitals are already having coping with the demands of the current population.