Health ministers from the federal, state, and territory will meet on Friday to discuss ways to address the nationwide issue of bed block, a condition in which emergency room patients cannot be moved to hospital beds due to a lack of available beds.
A group of ministers will travel to Canberra to investigate ways to discharge patients who don't essentially need hospital care, thus reducing hospital beds and reducing the strain on the health system.
“Our hard-working hospital staff, of course, give these people the best possible care, but because they can’t be discharged, staff can’t move patients into hospital beds from the emergency department.”
“These patients no longer require hospital care and are ready to be discharged, but they are stuck in hospitals waiting on NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) support or a place in a residential aged care facility. These poor patients are literally “stranded,” he said.
30 June 2022
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