A South Australian woman who feared she might not make it while waiting for heart surgery has been told her life-saving procedure has been scheduled for next week.<\/p>\n
Bek Batt told ABC Radio Adelaide on Tuesday morning that she was told in January that she needed a pacemaker and two stents in her heart, as well as a cardiac ablation, to treat an irregular heartbeat.<\/p>\n
The Victor Harbor woman said she had met a surgeon and was told she would be waiting for no more than a month.<\/p>\n
“He said if he had his way I’d be in within two weeks, I was promised it would be no more than two weeks, no more than four weeks, I’m still waiting,” she said.<\/p>\n
“I think I’ll be gone before I get the heart surgery.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Flinders Medical Centre is one of the busiest hospitals in Adelaide. (ABC News: Che Chorley)<\/p>\n
The 60-year-old woman said she was worried she would have a stroke while waiting for the surgery at Flinders Medical Centre (FMC) after already waiting 18 months for the specialist appointment.<\/p>\n
But she said she understood the significant demand on healthcare workers.<\/p>\n
“They’re all under pressure and there’s no way around it,” Ms Batt said.<\/p>\n
“It’s a real juggling system for everybody, I understand it \u2026 but it’s difficult just sitting in limbo.”<\/p>\n
Health network issues apology<\/p>\n
After speaking with the ABC, Ms Batt was told her surgery had been scheduled for next week.<\/p>\n
The woman said she was relieved to have a booked-in date and was glad to have “a bit of freedom” back after spending months making sure she was not far from medical attention.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Victor Harbor woman Bek Batt was waiting on heart surgery at Flinders Medical Centre. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
Kerrie Mahon, chief executive officer of the Southern Adelaide Local Health Network that manages the FMC, has apologised to Ms Batt.<\/p>\n
She said Ms Batt had appointments at FMC in January and again in April when her case was “appropriately categorised” by a cardiology specialist as category 2.<\/p>\n
Ms Mahon said category 2 patients typically have a three-month wait for their surgery and acknowledged Ms Batt has been waiting longer.<\/p>\n
“Ms Batt’s condition is not life-threatening but it can be symptomatic and very distressing,” Ms Mahon said.<\/p>\n
“I just want to apologise to Ms Batt if she was in any way distressed by that [delay], I can understand having complex procedures and conditions can be very stressful and waiting for surgery can be a very stressful time.”<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Kerrie Mahon says Ms Batt’s surgery was cancelled but has been rescheduled. (ABC News)<\/p>\n
Ms Mahon said Ms Batt’s surgery was originally set for this month but was later cancelled.<\/p>\n
“Sometimes we need to re-prioritise patients, we need to see the most urgent patients first, that can actually happen from time to time,” she said.<\/p>\n
“I don’t know the exact cause of this case but we have been able to reschedule her as a priority at the end of the month.<\/p>\n
“I would hope patients don’t feel they need to come to the media and they are very welcome to feedback to SALHN, to the clinical team.”<\/p>\n
Ms Mahon said wait times for specialist appointments referred by general practitioners depend on patient conditions.<\/p>\n
“Our referrals from general practitioners are based on the referral information, again we endeavour to see the most urgent patients first,” she said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Robyn Lawrence says the health system is “extremely busy”. (ABC News: Briana Fiore)<\/p>\n
Earlier today, SA Health chief executive Robyn Lawrence said the health system was facing “unprecedented demand” in some areas because of “a really bad flu season this year”.<\/p>\n
“It’s not a crisis but it’s definitely extremely busy right across our system,” Dr Lawrence said.<\/p>\n
“We also have 261 patients waiting for residential aged care, which is a 40 per cent uplift since last year.”<\/p>\n
She said the decision to postpone category 1 elective surgery was up to doctors at individual hospitals.<\/p>\n
“If the hospital needs to make that call and they can do it safely, they will make the appropriate decision,” she said.<\/p>\n
The FMC, the biggest hospital in Adelaide’s southern suburbs, is where ambulances spend more time waiting to offload patients \u2014 also known as being “ramped” \u2014 than any other Adelaide hospital excluding the Royal Adelaide, according to government data which dates back to 2017.<\/a><\/p>\n The number of hours ambulances spent ramped outside the FMC increased from 876 in February to 1,121 in March \u2014 the biggest spike of any Adelaide hospital.<\/p>\n