"Cancelled surgery due to no bed availability"

To whom it may concern,

I am writing on behalf of my older parent who is in their late 70s.

My parent and our family have experienced unsatisfactory service from the Government of Western Australia's healthcare service, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.

My parent has had 3 surgeries cancelled. Once the day prior to admission a couple of months ago, and twice they were admitted for surgery last month and this month only to be sent home after waiting 6 hours in a bed, to be told they wouldn't have surgery because of, I understand, a lack of high dependency (ICU) beds available for post-surgery care.

I feel the stress that this has put on my parent and our family is unacceptable. 6am admission times, with 6 hour waits only to be told to go home is not fair, after they have fasted and taken all the necessary steps to prepare for surgery, especially the mental preparation.

When asking the registrar staff from the neurology department and the nurses if the 4th time my parent is brought in, is this going to happen again, the answer is, I recall, "we don't know and it's possible". I feel it is not fair and it's not satisfactory for anyone, especially an elderly patient, to be put through this. My parent's family have to organise leave from work to ensure they are able to get to the hospital and have the aftercare at home they need. I feel we cannot keep disrupting our lives to suit the healthcare departments' apparent lack of resources.

I sympathise with the fact that the patients in these high dependency beds need them, but how does a hospital organise for somebody to be admitted for surgery and seemingly not organise a bed to be available for post-surgery care? Is my parent going to come to hospital 4, 10, 20 times before a bed is available for them? I feel we cannot keep being admitted and sent away. I believe the psychological stress on my parent and the family is not ethical.

My parent is booked in again for next month, and I ask - how are you going to ensure my parent's procedure is done and a bed is available for them?

I look forward to your response.

Kind regards,

horologiumfs49