Editor:
What I saw during my recent stay at St. Mary’s Hospital shocked me.
Initially, the paramedics had to wait well over an hour before I could be admitted to emergency. From there I was transferred to the critical care unit, which is designed for four beds. As my home for the next eight days, I, a single person, took up a quarter of the space in a unit designed to serve the entire Sunshine Coast.
I spent much of my time listening to the chatter of the staff. The single-most talked about subject was how backed up they were in emergency. When I was discharged from the general ward, I was asked to get out immediately so they could clean for the next patient.
So this new facility, opened barely over a year ago, is already bursting at the seams. We are in the midst of a population boom on the Coast. Unless there is a major expansion, matters will only go downhill from here. That is the stark reality we must face up to.
