The Bundaberg emergency response team
Michael P. Daly A , Michael I. Cleary B D and Linda J. McCormack CA Metro South Health Service District, Queensland Health, Princess Alexandra Hospital, Ipswich Road, Woolloongabba, Qld 4102, Australia. Email: michaelp_daly@health.qld.gov.au
B School of Public Health, Queensland University of Technology, Deputy Director-General, Health Services and Clinical Innovation, Queensland Health, 147–163 Charlotte St. Brisbane Qld 4000, Australia.
C Incident Management and Care Reform, Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Service, Centre for Healthcare Improvement, Queensland Health, PO Box 152, RBWH Herston, Qld 4029, Australia. Email: linda_mccormack@health.qld.gov.au
D Corresponding author. Email: michael_cleary@health.qld.gov.au
Australian Health Review 36(4) 384-389 https://doi.org/10.1071/AH11061
Submitted: 23 June 2011 Accepted: 26 April 2012 Published: 2 November 2012
Abstract
A major crisis affected Bundaberg Hospital in 2005 following the exposure of the concerns about Dr Jayant Patel and the subsequent sudden exit of the Hospital Executive. The Bundaberg Emergency Response Team (BERT) was created as an emergency intervention whose brief was, over a 6-week period, to maintain the function of the hospital in the face of the community’s loss of confidence in the service; to find out what had happened to Dr Patel’s patients and to organise appropriate care and treatment for them. The authors acted as the senior members of BERT. Serious events such as these are rare and there was no framework to guide the team. BERT quickly established processes to assess the extent of harm to patients and to mobilise large scale clinical and counselling assistance for patients and staff. The team also managed the local health service, engagement with the community and assistance with the various investigations being conducted into Dr Patel. BERT was considered by the community and the former patients of Dr Patel to be an appropriate and professional response to the situation. The experience provides a framework for responses to these types of situations and herein we discuss key points for successful implementation.
What is known about the topic? There is little in the literature that describes a framework used to successfully manage a hospital in crisis after serious public allegations are made.
What does this paper add? The paper adds the findings of the management of a rare but very significant event: a hospital going into crisis after serious public allegations are made. It also provides the learnings of the management team in this event, and a framework for the future management of similar crises.
What are the implications for practitioners? The framework provided in this paper is unique. Given the need for a rapid response in such events and the rarity of these events, practitioners now have a readily available tool to help them rapidly provide the appropriate response.
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