Patient woes continue at Christchurch hospital
By KIM THOMAS - The Press | Friday, 29 August 2008
Patients are still waiting in corridors in Christchurch Hospital's emergency department despite management assurances a radical overhaul this year would address overcrowding.
The department's clinical director, Angela Pitchford, told yesterday's Hospital Advisory Committee (HAC) meeting there were patients waiting in corridors on 20 days last month.
Several months ago at the official opening of the revamped department, Pitchford told The Press the changes would mean no patients would have to be cared for in corridors.
The revamp, which had added more than 15 beds, was part of Project Red, an initiative led by senior medical staff to address chronic overcrowding in the department.
Pitchford told yesterday's HAC meeting that July had been a huge month for the department, with an extra 200 patients compared with the same month last year.
Cases were also, on average, more complex, she said.
One of the main reasons patients were being cared for in corridors was because overcrowding meant there were no beds for them to be transferred to within the hospital.
The department did not count how many days last July patients were left waiting in corridors so it was difficult to say whether the situation was worse, Pitchford said.
However, the department was far bigger than last year and it was expected the increase in beds would put an end to patients being treated in corridors, she said.
Christchurch Hospital general manager Mark Leggett said the hospital had been in red gridlock where no beds were available throughout the hospital and at least five patients were waiting at least twice this month.
The hospital had been at least 10 per cent busier this July than the same month last year, he said.
Last Tuesday there were almost 200 people requiring admission to medical wards but only 153 beds, he said.
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