“I’m sending you this email to bring to your attention the chaotic situation at Mater Dei Hospital”

I have received the following email from somebody who works at Mater Dei Hospital, and who gave me his name.

I’m sending you this email to bring to your attention the chaotic situation at Mater Dei Hospital. For the past two weeks the hospital and more specifically its A&E department have been working in crisis mode. This isn’t because of the usual surge in admissions that happen in winter, but has been caused by the poor decision of the hospital’s administration.

A few months ago, the Parliamentary Secretary for Health told the media that the new Minor Care Clinic set up at the hospital means that there is now “a polyclinic” at Mater Dei. This is utterly false. This clinic operates only from 8am till midnight and is manned by GPs who work part-time there depending on how much time they can spare around their full-time jobs in health centres or private hospitals. This means that there are often no GPs available at the Minor Care Clinic, and a SENIOR DOCTOR from A&E has to be taken off the most acute area in Emergency to see these minor cases – mainly people who didn’t bother to go to one of the eight health centres around the island. This is causing even more pressure at the Accident & Emergency Department.

Rather than encouraging people to use A&E only for REAL EMERGENCIES the health authorities are actively encouraging people to flood the A & E Department and to skip the health centres altogether. This is creating a sense of demotivation among the health professionals working there. In fact, since last June three senior A&E doctors and 10 senior A&E nurses have resigned or have asked to be transferred to another department as they can’t cope.

Another of the incompetent hospital CEO’s decisions was to close down MAU3 and M7 wards for refurbishment just before Christmas. This led to chaos. M7 had to be re-opened while still only half refurbished, because the hospital was full by Boxing Day.

Then they had to re-open the Paediatric Corridor – yes, the corridor – which is now crammed with about 16 people on stretchers. They have also had to take A&E’s Area 2 and convert it into a ward. This has inevitably rendered the situation at A&E more desperate still. There are more patients to deal with, but a smaller area were they can be seen. The hospital CEO took the decision to turn A&E Area 2 into a ward against the advice of the A&E management.

If a mass incident were to happen now, A&E wouldn’t be able to cope. The Paqpaqli crash happened on a Sunday and the Paceville nightclub stampede happened during a night shift. On both occasions, fortunately and unusually, A&E was almost empty.

Ivan Falzon (left), the former Labour councillor and party canvasser who was made Mater Dei Hospital CEO by the incoming Labour government. He is seen here with Labour MP and eye surgeon Franco Mercieca.