Skip to main content RSS Info Close Search Facebook Twitter
Location
Category
Providers / Vacancies
Feedback

Tasmania’s Ouse District Hospital under threat

Health Consumers of Rural and Remote Australia’s Tasmanian representative, Vianne Brain, from Ouse in Tasmania’s central highlands is at odds with the policies of the Tasmanian government and its decision to downgrade Ouse District Hospital.

“This is very difficult to comprehend,” Ms Brain said as she contemplated the future of the hospital in Ouse. “In this isolated area, the Ouse District Hospital provides a first point of care for people who are ill, injured, or simply waiting placement to Ouse Nursing Home and for palliative care.

“This hospital provides care for people who have lived in the Ouse area for all of their lives – not to mention for travelers who underestimate the danger of the road conditions in the area,” Ms Brain pointed out. “In the Minister’s own words, there is an ageing population and a high level of chronic disease. Ouse and surrounds is evidence of just those health conditions. The 4 sub-acute beds at Ouse provide an invaluable service for people during periods of non-critical acute illness, exacerbation of chronic illness, rehabilitation after some traumatic episode and the staff at the hospital are very skilled in palliative care,” Ms Brain emphasised.

“People have the right to choose whether they wish to die in their own community and, unlike the Minister, our community will rally in support of our oldies,” Ms Brain said.

Since the inception of funded residential aged care at Ouse in the mid 1990s it has consistently been the most popular service offered there. There have been very few occasions when a bed has been empty, as people from all over the municipality take the opportunity to remain in their own community for the rest of their lives.

“Ouse enjoys an excellent reputation in aged care – this has been constantly acknowledged.

“Unlike many small rural towns, Ouse has a permanent GP. The GP provides daytime clinics and emergency care. When GPs are so scarce, why now jeopardise this good outcome for Central Highlands by placing the future of the hospital in doubt?” Ms Brain said.

“A solid future for rural health care is vital. It will help keep the population in rural areas, enabling them to be in charge of their health care decisions. Keep small rural hospitals functioning.”

Share this article

Read next

Subscribe

Subscribe to our Talking Aged Care newsletter to get our latest articles, delivered straight to your inbox
  1. Eighty years after getting married, this couple lives together...
  2. Who says your age should limit your dreams?
  3. Data from a recently released report highlights a concerning...
  4. With an ageing and growing population, data from the...
  5. Approximately 411,000 Australians are estimated to be living...
  6. How could you benefit from attending university as an older...

Recent articles

  1. What is a lesser known impact of hearing loss for older...
  2. Are there options for older Australians to live in the same...
  3. The new initiative brings older Aussies together to see the...
  4. A collaboration between Dementia Australia and VistaPrint...
  5. How can you look after yourself during the expected heatwaves...
  6. How is an interactive app being used in aged care settings to...
  7. How could the upcoming strengthening of super standards save...
  8. Brother Thomas Oliver Pickett, a Western Australian volunteer,...
  9. Why is an illegal website targeting older Australians?
  10. Eighty years after getting married, this couple lives together...
  11. How does heart health impact your risk of dementia?
  12. Instead of going to the hospital, could older Australians...
  1. {{ result.posted_at | timeago }}

Sorry, no results were found
Perhaps you misspelled your search query, or need to try using broader search terms.
Please type a topic to search
Some frequently searched topics are "dementia", "elderly" etc
Close